A Crane's Flight
by BabyBlueGrl02
Summary: Look at the title, it has a double meaning, or you could just read the story. Updated! It's a Therox story!
1. Default Chapter

Hey guys, I'm back again!! I know that I haven't finished Look At Us Now, but I promise I'll get back to that one. All right this is another idea I've had in my head and my friend convinced me to write it. In this, Theresa did marry Julian, but she didn't sleep with him. Ethan still found out and that's when Julian and Theresa finally had a divorce, so we'll pretend they were married for about one or two months. As soon as Ethan found out, he broke up with Theresa b/c she lied to him. Ethan married Gwen less than a year after he broke up with Theresa b/c he believed he was in love with her. Fox came to Harmony briefly, on the day of Ethan and Gwen's wedding, for about six months, and he and Theresa got along greatly and were good friends, but he and Ethan hated each other. Eventually, Fox got tired of Harmony and decided to leave. Gwen and Theresa still hate each other and Ivy and Rebecca are still bitches; Eric is also who I picture Ethan to be, b/c I love Travis too much to make him a bad guy. I'm not sure about Julian or Alistair yet, I kind of like them being the good guys, so we'll see. The first 1 or 2 chapters are going to be in the past, but then it'll jump ahead to five or six years later which will be the present time and where most of the story will take place. I might add characters from Days of Our Lives, but that's not guaranteed. My goal is to build Fox and Theresa into a powerful couple, we'll see if it works. Here are the first two parts!!!  
  
Title: A Crane's Flight Category: Fox/Theresa and maybe others Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Passions or Days of Our Lives Rating: PG-13, most likely  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Five Years Earlier  
  
"Theresa, don't do this, it'll only lead to heartache for you," Whitney pleaded with Theresa as the approached the door to the Crane mansion.  
  
"Whitney I know what I'm doing. Ethan loves me and I'm going to prove it to you," Theresa replied confidently.  
  
"Theresa, he's married! He's been married to Gwen for almost a year. You have to accept that," Whitney said.  
  
"I know he's married, but he doesn't love her Whitney! Not the way he loves me. I could make him so much happier than Gwen ever could!" Theresa replied as she entered the Crane mansion.  
  
"Maybe that's true, but he's still a married man. You know better than to go after another woman's husband," she scolded.  
  
"I don't plan on doing anything with Ethan until he and Gwen are officially divorced. I just want to talk to him and push him in that direction," she replied.  
  
"I'm serious Theresa. I love you and I just have a feeling that this is a really bad idea. You didn't even call before you stopped by, he could be really busy right now," Whitney said, trying to reason.  
  
"It's almost eight o'clock at night, Whit. Ethan is always relaxing at this time," Theresa replied.  
  
"And what about Gwen? Don't you think he'd be spending a night out on the town with his wife?" she asked.  
  
"It doesn't hurt to check Whit," Theresa said, ignoring the pain she felt when Whitney referred to Gwen as Ethan's wife.  
  
"Fine, let's get this over with," Whitney said, finally giving in.  
  
"You're coming with me?" Theresa asked hopefully.  
  
"Well, I'm not going to leave you alone so that you can get into some kind of trouble. Besides, I don't want you running into Ivy or Rebecca; those two can be downright vicious to you," Whitney said.  
  
"I can handle those two," Theresa said as she made her way up the Crane staircase.  
  
"Whatever," Whitney said as she followed her upstairs.  
  
"This is his room," Theresa said when they reached Ethan and Gwen's room. She put her hand on the doorknob and was about to open it when Whitney stopped her.  
  
"Aren't you even going to knock?" Whitney asked.  
  
"No, if I knock, he'll probably just tell me to go away," Theresa replied.  
  
"All right, go ahead then," Whitney said.  
  
Theresa put her back on the door and turned the knob, letting herself into his room. She reached to the side and turned on the room light.  
  
"Ethan, I wanted to talk to you abo-" Theresa stopped abruptly at the sight that greeted her. Lying right there on the bed was Gwen with Ethan on top of her, kissing her neck as he rubbed his hands over her body.  
  
"Jesus, Theresa, don't you know how to knock!" Gwen exclaimed, slightly pushing Ethan off of her and pulling a sheet up to cover her body.  
  
"I- I-" Theresa stuttered.  
  
"You have absolutely no respect for myself or Gwen, do you Theresa?" Ethan asked angrily as he put his pants back on.  
  
"I just wanted to talk to you, Ethan. I didn't think that you and Gwen would be doing.that," she said, gesturing toward the bed with her arms.  
  
"That's your problem - you never think!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Who the hell do you think you are, Ethan?" Whitney asked angrily, not liking his attitude toward Theresa. "Theresa, a girl who you loved enough to propose to, just came up here to talk to you, and just because she made a few mistakes, you think you have a right to yell and belittle her? I don't care what the hell she did to you, no one talks to my best friend like that," she said firmly.  
  
"Thanks, Whit, but you didn't have to do that," Theresa said. "Ethan, I'm sorry for barging in like that, I should have knocked. However, I would still like to talk to you," she said.  
  
"What are you up to now, Theresa?" Gwen asked from her position on the bed.  
  
"I would just like to talk to Ethan privately," Theresa said while glaring at Gwen.  
  
"Well, since I'm his wife, you can say anything in front of me," Gwen said smugly.  
  
"Ethan, please, can we talk alone?" Theresa pleaded as she looked Ethan in the eyes. Ethan looked at Theresa suspiciously, wondering what she wanted. Seeing the desperate look in her eyes, Ethan realized he couldn't say no to her.  
  
"All, fine, but you better make it quick," he said coldly.  
  
"I will, I promise," Theresa said as she took Ethan's hand and led him out the room.  
  
"All, right, we're alone now. What do you want?" he asked.  
  
"First of all, I wanted to apologize once again for all the lies I've told you. No matter how I try to justify them I know they were wrong," she said.  
  
"I've already heard your apologies, Theresa. And to be honest, they are quite pointless because they don't change the fact that our entire relationship was a lie," he replied icily.  
  
"How can you say that?" Theresa asked devastatingly. "When we were together, we were hopelessly in love, how can you say that it was not even real?"  
  
"Because it's the truth. If you really loved me, you wouldn't have lied to me," he replied.  
  
"I thought I was doing the best thing. I just didn't want to lose you," she replied sadly as tears welled up in her eyes.  
  
"Well it's too late for apologies now," Ethan said dryly, forcing himself to ignore Theresa's tears.  
  
"No, it's not. We can still make it work. I know you love me and I know that somewhere in your heart, you would have liked us to still be together. All you have to do is divorce Gwen," Theresa said hopefully.  
  
"I refuse to leave Gwen. She has always been there for me and I love her more than anything in this world," he said firmly.  
  
"You don't mean that," she said mournfully.  
  
"Yes I do, Theresa. I know that we were very happy together, but I've been happily married for over a year. I'm not going to leave my loving, devoted wife to be with someone who makes lying a fulltime job," he said rudely.  
  
"How can you be so cruel to me?"  
  
"It's easy when I just don't give a damn," he said frostily. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to continue my night with my lovely wife," he said before reentering the room. Theresa quickly followed him in, ignoring the tears that were freely flowing down her face.  
  
"Ethan, please, don't do this. Don't throw away everything we had," she pleaded.  
  
"I don't have to - you did that yourself," he said as he sat on his bed and put his arms around a smug Gwen. "Would you two mind leaving so that my wife and I can get back to our previous activity," he said frigidly. Unable to stand the site of Ethan with his arms around Gwen, Theresa took one last painful look at Ethan before turning and running out of the room and mansion.  
  
"Finally, she's gone," Gwen said with a smile. "You might as well join her," she said to Whitney. Whitney ignored her and turned her eyes to Ethan. She couldn't believe that she once respected him; that she once considered him to be one of her closest friends.  
  
"Are you proud of yourself?" she asked firmly.  
  
"Excuse me?" Ethan asked confused.  
  
"You finally made Theresa feel as much pain as you felt the day you found out that she had been married to Julian for two months. That was your goal, wasn't it?" she asked brusquely.  
  
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Ethan said unconvincingly. "I meant every word I said, and I want nothing to do with Theresa," he said.  
  
"Keep telling yourself that. But deep down, you and I both know that you just wanted her to feel pain; more pain than you ever felt. Well, congratulations, you did it!" she said angrily as she headed out the door. She turned around and spoke one more time before leaving the room. "Go ahead and gloat inside about what you just did to her. But mark my words Ethan Winthrop, Theresa will get through this, and when she does, you regret this day for the rest of your life."  
  
"Who the hell does she think she is?!" Gwen exclaimed after Whitney slammed the door. "How dare she come in here and talk down to you in your own room!"  
  
"Forget it, Gwen. It's over," Ethan said dryly, his mind still thinking about Whitney's words.  
  
"Was she right, Ethan? Do you still love Theresa and was that just an act to make her feel pain?" Gwen asked, suddenly feeling self-conscious.  
  
"No, no, Gwen. I love you and marrying you was the best thing to ever happen to me," Ethan said feebly.  
  
"I know, I know. I guess I just needed a little reassurance," Gwen said.  
  
"Well, you've got it. I love you with every fiber of my being," he said before leaning down to kiss her.  
  
"And I love you," Gwen said with a smile. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
Whitney patted Theresa's head repeatedly as she tried to console her best friend. They had returned from the mansion three hours ago and Whitney had finally gotten Theresa to stop crying. Now, they were both laying on Theresa's bed in silence.  
  
"Thanks for staying with me, Whit. I know you'd rather be with Chad right now," Theresa said.  
  
"Don't worry about it. My best friend is in pain and that's all that matters now," Whitney replied.  
  
"God, I don't know why, but I still love him Whit," Theresa said as she once again let her mind drift to Ethan.  
  
"After all the things he said to you, I don't understand how you can even like him. I personally am ashamed to say that I used to be his friend," Whitney replied.  
  
"I know, but we were so good together! And now, it'll all over," she said sadly.  
  
"You'll love again, Resa. Besides, you deserve better than Ethan. God, he purposely tried to hurt you by getting cozy with Gwen in front of you," she said.  
  
"Yeah, well it worked. It felt like someone drove a dozen needles through my heart," Theresa said sadly as she replayed the image in her head. "I can't stand to see them together," she said.  
  
"I know it's painful, and I'm sorry; you really don't deserve to go through this, Resa," Whitney said.  
  
"You're right, I don't, and I won't," she said determinedly.  
  
"What are you talking about," Whitney asked warily.  
  
"I'm not going to stay here and be reminded everyday of my failed dreams," Theresa replied as she got off the bed and went to her closet. She reemerged a few seconds later with a suitcase.  
  
"What are you doing?" Whitney asked.  
  
"I'm leaving Harmony."  
  
"WHAT!!!" Whitney exclaimed. "You can't just pack up and leave. Where will you go, who will you stay with, hell, how will you get there?" she asked in one breath.  
  
"I don't know, I don't know, and by plane," Theresa said, answering all of Whitney's questions.  
  
"How do you plan on paying for a plane ticket?" Whitney asked.  
  
"I have a lot of money saved up. I started saving up when the secret came out that Ethan wasn't a Crane. Anyway, it's not a lot, but it'll be enough for a plane ticket," she replied.  
  
"Where are you going?" Whitney asked.  
  
"I don't know. I'll just take the first flight that has an opening seat out of America," she replied.  
  
"You're leaving the country!?" Whitney exclaimed. This was too much for her. She could tolerate having her best friend moving to another state, but another country was a totally different story. "Resa, you can't go that far, you have too many people that love and care about you, including me!" she said.  
  
"I know Whit, and I feel bad for leaving you, but you have to understand where I'm coming from. Would you honestly be able to stay here if you constantly saw Chad walking around with a wife that wasn't you?" she asked, trying to make Whitney understand.  
  
"No, I'd feel like running to Alaska," Whitney said, realizing that she couldn't argue with Theresa when she knew she'd have done the same thing if she were in that position.  
  
"Then you see my point," Theresa said. "I love you Whit, and I honestly don't know how I'll survive without you, but I have to go. It's just too painful staying here, and I'll never be able to move on if I'm constantly seeing Ethan with Gwen," she said.  
  
"I understand. All right, fine, I have no choice but to accept this. But you have to promise to keep in touch with me. You call me as soon as you get wherever it is you're going, and you make sure that we talk at least twice every week," Whitney said.  
  
"Don't worry, I'll make sure that we keep in touch. You just can't tell Mama or my brothers. They'll make me come back if they know where I am, especially Luis," she said.  
  
"What am I supposed to tell them? They know that you tell me everything," Whitney said worriedly.  
  
"Just tell them that you don't know where I went, because technically, you don't. And when I do contact you, just conveniently leave it out of every conversation you have with any one of them," Theresa explained.  
  
"Okay, I can do that," Whitney said.  
  
"Good, now help me pack," Theresa said as she started to gather her clothes.  
  
Almost an hour later, Theresa and Whitney were parked in the parking lot of the airport.  
  
"So, you're really leaving?" Whitney asked sadly.  
  
"Yeah, I guess I am. I promise I'll call you as soon as I get wherever I'm going. And when I'm settled, I'll make sure you and Chad can come over and visit," she said.  
  
"I know you will," Whitney said trying to stop the tears from falling.  
  
"Don't cry, Whit, not for me. I'll be fine, I'm just doing what everyone has been telling me all my life; I'm growing up."  
  
"I know, and I'm proud of you. Take care of yourself, Resa. I love you," Whitney said, pulling Theresa into a tight hug.  
  
"I love you too, Whit," Theresa replied. "Tell my family that I love them and I'm sorry for leaving without saying goodbye. And tell Chad, that I'll come after him if he hurts you," she said.  
  
"I will," Whitney replied as she let go of Theresa. "You better go in now, it's getting really late and your mom might wake up and notice that you're not in your room," she said.  
  
"All right. I'll call you soon," Theresa said sadly as she got out of the car. "Bye Whit."  
  
"Bye, Resa," Whitney said before Theresa entered the airport.  
  
Theresa made her way over to the line by the front desk and waited. When it was her turn, she approached the front desk.  
  
"Hello, how my I help you," a gentle, elderly woman said.  
  
"Hi, I wanted to purchase a ticket for the first flight out of the country," Theresa said.  
  
"Well, the person before just refunded her ticket to Paris, France. You may have her seat if you want; but the flight leaves in less than half an hour," the woman replied.  
  
"That's perfect," Theresa said. She quickly paid for her ticket and checked in her luggage before hurrying to the gate and boarding the plane. Ten minutes into the flight, she finally let her eyes drift close for some much needed sleep.  
  
About seven hours later, Theresa found herself wandering around the airport in Paris. Now that she had finally arrived, she wasn't sure where to go or what to do. She was quickly realizing how reckless her decision had been. Not watching where she was going, Theresa accidentally bumped into someone.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, not bothering to look up.  
  
"Theresa? Is that you?" the voice asked. Theresa looked up at the sound of the familiar voice.  
  
"Oh my God! Fox!" Theresa exclaimed, reaching up and pulling him into a tight hug. "I can't believe I ran into you! What are you doing here," she asked.  
  
"I live here in Paris," Fox replied. "I was just returning from a mini vacation in Australia," Fox replied.  
  
"That's cool. God, I never thought I'd see you again," Theresa said.  
  
"I could say the same. What are you doing here?" he asked.  
  
"I'm moving here," Theresa replied.  
  
"Really? Why?" Fox asked confused.  
  
"Why else? Ethan of course," Theresa replied.  
  
"You mean, you finally got him to leave Gwen and go back to you?" Fox asked looking at Theresa in surprise.  
  
"No, unfortunately, I couldn't get through to him," Theresa replied sadly. "I'm here because I couldn't stand to see him and Gwen together, I had to get away. I didn't even tell my family that I was leaving. Whitney was the only person I told. God, I didn't even think about where I would live and how I would provide for myself," Theresa explained.  
  
"Wow, how very spontaneous and irresponsible of you - I taught you well," he joked. Theresa laughed at his comment.  
  
"I know, I guess you were rubbing off on me more than I thought," she replied with a smile.  
  
"Well, since you have absolutely no where to go, and I have a huge penthouse with a wonderful view, you can come live with me," Fox said.  
  
"Really? Are you serious?" Theresa asked with shock.  
  
"Of course. You're one of my best friends, and besides it's been eight months since I last saw you, we have a lot of catching up to do," he said as he took Theresa's luggage from her hand.  
  
"Wow, Fox, this is very nice of you. I don't even know how to thank you. I promise you won't regret it," she said excitedly.  
  
"I know I won't," Fox replied, happy to see a hint of a sparkle back in Theresa's eyes. "Anyway, what do you say we head back to my, I mean, our house," he said.  
  
"I say that's a good idea. Lead the way to our house," Theresa said with a smile, linking her arms with Fox's. "So, how was Australia?" she asked as they started walking.  
  
"Well." Fox said, starting to tell Theresa about his trip as they proceeded out of the airport and into their new life as roommates and best friends.  
  
TBC.  
  
Next Chapter - The next chapter will jump to the present and that's where the story will really begin - but that's only if you guys like this so far. So tell me what you think and please leave feedback!!! 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
The Present.  
  
Gwen walked over to Sheridan and gave her another cup of coffee to try and calm her down. Sheridan accepted the coffee and took a sip before putting it down on the table with the other four cold cups of coffee.  
  
"I'm sure Luis will be okay," Ethan said from his position next to Sheridan.  
  
Sheridan, Gwen, Ethan, Hank, the Lopez-Fitzgeralds, and the Cranes were all sitting in the waiting room of the Harmony Hospital, awaiting information on Luis's condition. Six hours ago, Sheridan had received a phone call saying that Luis had been shot during a police chase and, after calling her loved ones, she rushed over to hospital. No one had given any of them an update on Luis's condition and right now, Sheridan had begun to suspect the worst-case scenarios.  
  
"Damn it! How long does it take to look at a patient!" Sheridan yelled as she stood up from her chair and began to pace again.  
  
"Sheridan, you need to relax," Beth Lopez-Fitzgerald said. "Freaking out isn't what Luis needs, he needs support and faith," she said.  
  
"I know, I know, but I'm so scared," Sheridan said as tears stared to roll down her eyes once again.  
  
"Luis is a strong guy, no matter how bad the injury is, he's not going to stop fighting," Antonio said, trying to reassure Sheridan.  
  
"But what if the doctors can't help him," she persisted.  
  
"Then we'll find a doctor who can," Julian spoke up. "We're Cranes, we'll go all the way to Alaska if we have to," he said as he walked over and put his arm around Sheridan.  
  
In the last couple of years, Julian had changed tremendously. After the secret came out that he and Eve had an affair, T.C. divorced Eve and took off with Liz and Simone. No one had heard from any of them ever since. Julian had been there to console Eve during her tough times and he had even helped her gain the forgiveness of Whitney. He had married Eve almost three years ago and he couldn't be happier.  
  
"Thank you Julian," Sheridan said as she returned his hug.  
  
"I know my son, Sheridan. He's going to pull through," Pilar said as Whitney and Chad entered the waiting room.  
  
"Where's Luis? Is he okay?" Whitney asked worriedly.  
  
"We haven't heard anything from the doctors yet," Julian replied.  
  
"Well, I'm sure he'll be fine," Chad said, seeing the tears well up in Sheridan's eyes once again.  
  
"Yeah, of course he will," Whitney said, trying to reassure herself and Sheridan. "My mom hasn't been here yet?" Whitney asked.  
  
"No, she must be really busy," Julian replied.  
  
"I see. Sheridan, is there anything we can do for you?" Whitney asked.  
  
"No, just pray for Luis," Sheridan said sadly.  
  
"Definitely," Chad replied.  
  
"Gwen, do we really need to be here. I'm getting really bored," Rebecca whispered softly to Gwen. Unfortunately, Pilar heard her.  
  
"Why the hell did you bother coming here, Rebecca!" she exclaimed. "You don't give a damn about my son!"  
  
"I came here for Gwennie," Rebecca replied. "She's worried for Sheridan and I'm worried about her," Rebecca lied.  
  
"Well you're unwanted, so why don't you just leave," Pilar said rudely. "And take Ivy with you," she said coldly as she glared at Ivy.  
  
"Believe me Pilar, I don't want to be here any more than you want me here. But cameras are out there and I'll look like a horrible bitch if I walk out of here while the husband of my ex-sister-in-law fights for his life," Ivy replied unemotionally.  
  
"You are such an inconsiderate bitch," Sheridan said icily.  
  
"Sheridan!" Ethan exclaimed, surprised by her comment to his mother.  
  
"I'm sorry Ethan, but Ivy is not the loving woman you make her out to be. My husband may be dying and all she cares about is how she'll look to the public!" Sheridan yelled.  
  
"Sheridan, I didn't mean it like that," Ivy said, trying to explain.  
  
"Yes you did, so don't bother trying to deny it," Sheridan snapped. "Pilar was right, you should just leave. Only people who actually care about Luis deserve to be here," she said.  
  
"I'm not going anywhere," Ivy said determinedly.  
  
"Sheridan, don't bother. She's not worth it," Julian said, pulling Sheridan away from Ivy. Sheridan glared at Ivy one more time before allowing herself to be dragged away by Julian.  
  
"Hello everyone, I have news on Luis's condition," Eve said as she entered to room nearly thirty minutes later.  
  
"Is he okay? Will he die? What happened to him?" Sheridan asked in one breath.  
  
"Sheridan, relax," Eve said with a smile. "The bullet that hit Luis just grazed his shoulder. All we had to do was patch it up; he's already getting his stuff so that he can go home," Eve explained. There was a collective sigh of relief after Eve had finished talking.  
  
"So, he's okay, then?" Sheridan asked, wanting to be absolutely sure.  
  
"Yes, he's fine," Ever reassured.  
  
"Then, why the hell did it take nearly seven hours for someone to tell us that!" she exclaimed in anger. "Do you realize how worried and scared we've all been!?!"  
  
"I'm really sorry for the delay, Sheridan. But we couldn't determine his condition until he regained consciousness and I knew it would be more painful if you knew that he was unconscious for over five hours," Eve explained.  
  
"You're right," Sheridan agreed. "I think that would have driven me off the brink," she added. "Well, where is he now?" she asked.  
  
"Right here," Luis said has he entered the waiting room. Sheridan immediately attacked him.  
  
"Oh my God! I was so worried, I'm so glad you're okay!" she exclaimed as she pulled him into a gripping hug.  
  
"Of course I'm okay. You think I'd let a little bullet keep me down?" he joked.  
  
"I can't believe you're already joking about this," Sheridan said.  
  
"Relax, babe, I'm okay," he said as Sheridan finally pulled away from him. Before he could relax, Pilar had pulled him into another hug.  
  
"Don't ever scare us like that again," Pilar said.  
  
"I won't, Mama," Luis replied. After he had received hugs from his other family members and close friends, he was finally ready to go.  
  
"All right, let's hurry up and get out of here, I hate hospitals," Luis said.  
  
"Sounds good to me," Hank agreed.  
  
Before any of them could even stand, they heard commotion from up ahead. It sounded like a girl was arguing with the receptionist.  
  
"I already told you miss. No one is allowed to see the victim unless you are a family member," the receptionist said rudely.  
  
"And I already told you that I'm his sister!" the girl replied angrily.  
  
"I need proof," the receptionist insisted.  
  
"It's in my car! I told you that my husband would bring my purse, just let me see my brother!" the girl exclaimed.  
  
"I can't do that."  
  
"All right, listen up lady," the girl said, finally losing her patience. "I just got a phone call from my husband's grandfather, telling me that my brother was hurt. I flew here all the way from Europe to see him and if you don't let me see him, I'll make sure that you never work a day in this town again," she said sternly.  
  
"Wow, that girl sounds pissed," Gwen said as they listened to the argument.  
  
"I know. She must really care about her brother to travel that far on such short notice," Luis said.  
  
"Well, that's not our business, let's hurry and get you home so you can rest," Sheridan said as she took Luis's hand. Once again they heard the loud voices.  
  
"Hey, miss! You can't back there, that's only for people who are waiting for patients," the receptionist said as she followed the girl who walking away from her.  
  
"I don't give a damn! I'm going to find my brother and no one is going to stop me," the girl said as she entered the waiting room. She looked up and saw some familiar faces. A few that she had missed more than anything and a few that she never wanted to see again. But only one face got her undivided attention.  
  
"Luis!!" Theresa exclaimed as she rushed over to Luis and pulled him into a deathly hug.  
  
"Theresa!?" Luis asked in surprise and excitement as he wrapped his arms around Theresa. "Where the hell have you been??"  
  
"That's not important. How are you? I was so worried when I found out that you were shot!" she exclaimed as she pulled out of his arms.  
  
"I'm fine, it was nothing important," Luis replied. "God, Resa, I've missed you so much," he said excitedly.  
  
"I've missed you too, Luis," Theresa said with a large smile.  
  
"Well, we've missed you too Resa, where's our hug?" Antonio said from his position next to Miguel.  
  
"Antonio! Miguel! It's so good to see you guys again," she said excitedly as she pulled both of them into a hug. "We have to catch up on the last five years," she said.  
  
"I'll say," Antonio said.  
  
"Theresita, where have you been?" Pilar asked as she came over to give Theresa a hug.  
  
"I was away, Mama. I know it was wrong of me to leave the way I did, but I promise that I took care of myself," Theresa said, assuring Pilar.  
  
"I know that you did. You can be very responsible when you want to be," Pilar said.  
  
"Excuse me, but do you people know her?" the receptionist asked, finally speaking up again.  
  
"Yeah," Luis said. "She's my little sister," he added.  
  
"I was trying to tell her that, but she refused to listen to me," Theresa replied as she looked accusingly at the receptionist.  
  
"I was just doing my job," she replied snobbishly.  
  
"Well if you want to keep that job, I suggest you change your tone," Theresa said firmly. The receptionist simply rolled her eyes and walked away. Theresa turned to see everyone staring at her in surprise.  
  
"What?" she asked confused.  
  
"What was that?" Luis asked. "Since when did you start threatening someone else with their job?"  
  
"I didn't like her tone toward me. From the moment I walked in, she looked a me like I was scum," Theresa replied.  
  
"You are," Gwen muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.  
  
"Gwen, I see you're still the cold bitch that I remember," Theresa said with a glare. Gwen glared at Theresa before replying.  
  
"Then that would mean that you're still the sad, pathetic, lovesick girl that I remember," she said.  
  
"All right, enough ladies," Ethan said. "It's good to see you again, Theresa," he said softly as he made his way over to her.  
  
"I wish I could say the same," Theresa replied coldly before stepping away from him.  
  
"Excuse me?" Ethan asked, surprised by her behavior toward him.  
  
"You heard me," Theresa replied. "Incase you forgot, you said some pretty cruel and hurtful things to me before I left. Why the hell would I be glad to see you?"  
  
"I'm sorry, Theresa," Ethan said feebly.  
  
"Save your apologies for someone who cares," Theresa replied with a roll of her eyes. Everyone looked on, unsure of what to do or say to break the tension in the room.  
  
"Husband!" Beth exclaimed finally, unable to stand the silence.  
  
"What?" everyone said at the same time, looking at Beth like she was crazy.  
  
"Theresa, you told the receptionist that your husband would bring in your purse. That means that you got married, right?" she asked.  
  
"What?" everyone asked once again, now looking at Theresa for an answer.  
  
"You got married? How could you?" Ethan asked devastatingly.  
  
"Why do you care if she got married?" Gwen asked jealously.  
  
"I- I just can't believe that someone wanted to marry her, considering how devious she can be," Ethan lied. Luis was about to attack him for that comment when Theresa's voice stopped him.  
  
"Go to hell, Ethan. Then again, you're married to Gwen so you're probably already there," she said.  
  
"You bitch," Gwen yelled.  
  
"The biggest one you'll ever know," Theresa said with a smile. "And in response to Beth, yes, I did get married; over four years ago," she said.  
  
"To who!" Luis and Antonio exclaimed, not liking the idea of Theresa being married to someone they hadn't even met. Before Theresa could reply, a tall, blond male walked breezily into the room.  
  
"Resa, you said you'd come back to help me," he said as he walked over to Theresa.  
  
"HIM!" Ethan said disgustedly. "You married my brother?!"  
  
"Good to see you too, half-bro" Fox said sardonically.  
  
"You married a Crane?" Luis exclaimed.  
  
"Yes, I did. Just like you married a Crane," Theresa said indignantly.  
  
"Sheridan is different," Luis reasoned.  
  
"So is Fox," Theresa insisted.  
  
"Fox is nothing like Sheridan," Ethan cut in. "He'll just break your heart in the end," he added.  
  
"Stay out of this Ethan," Luis said, feeling his hatred for Ethan build up again.  
  
"I'm just trying to help her," Ethan said.  
  
"Yeah, well if I recall correctly, you helped her right out of the damn country," Luis said bitterly. Ethan immediately closed his mouth.  
  
"Well, I don't know about everyone else, but I'm happy for you two," Sheridan said as reached over and hugged Theresa and Fox.  
  
"Thank you Sheridan, "Theresa said.  
  
"Are you guys going to stay in Harmony?" Beth asked.  
  
"Please say no," Gwen said, all too loudly.  
  
"As a matter of fact, we were thinking of moving back here, so that Fox can learn how to run Crane Industries," Theresa answered, ignoring Gwen's comment.  
  
"Do you honestly think that Alistair will allow Fox to run that company?" Gwen asked with a laugh. "He'll let Ethan, a non-Crane, run it before he lets Fox run it," she said matter-of-factly.  
  
"We'll see about that," Fox said confidently. "So Gwen, how life as Mrs. Winthrop? Is it as boring as I expected?" he asked with a smile.  
  
"Shut up, Fox," Gwen said rudely, not bothering to confirm or deny his comment. Fox simply smiled. Before he could make another remark, a sound interrupted them. They all turned to the door to see a boy and a girl, no older than two years, waddle their way into the room with huge smiles on their faces. The girl had dark brown hair with hazel eyes and the boy was had blond hair with dark eyes. They both seemed to be running from someone and enjoying themselves.  
  
"Jessica, Justin, stop running away from me," a grown man dressed in a suit said as he chased the children. "Your parents aren't going to be happy with you," he added. That seemed to catch the children's attention because they immediately stopped running. They turned and looked at all of the people in the room. Fox and Theresa immediately caught their attention. In an instant, they were waddling towards them, screaming excitedly at the top of their lungs.  
  
"Mama!"  
  
"Dada!"  
  
TBC.  
  
Please leave feedback!!! 


	4. Chapter 4

Yay! Yay! Yay!!!!! Finals are over, school's almost out, and my computer is fixed!!!!! For those who are wondering, the reason for my lack of updates is that my computer was broken and I couldn't open any of my documents. However, I finally got someone to come over and look at it and after he fixed it, I immediately went to work on this chapter. Thanks to all those who left feedback and I'm sorry for the long wait. I hope you guys like this chapter!!!  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Fox and Theresa immediately bent down and opened their arms for the two children. Fox picked up Jessica while Theresa picked up Justin. The man that had been chasing them had finally stopped and seemed to be catching his breath.  
  
"I'm really sorry sir," he said worriedly. "I tried to get them to sit still, but they wouldn't, so I decided to let them in to come look for you two. As soon as I let them go, they took off," he explained.  
  
"Don't worry about it, Charles," Theresa said as she started to play with Justin. "I know how they can get," she added.  
  
"Didn't Mommy and Daddy tell you two to behave for Charles?" Fox asked Jessica and Justin in a semi-serious voice. The two children simply giggled, unable to say much. Fox couldn't help but smile at the adorable looks on his children's faces. "You're so lucky, daddy loves you so much," Fox said as he kissed Jessica's cheeks. Jessica giggled again and wrapped her small arms around Fox's neck while Justin started playing with Theresa's hair. Their intimate family moment was interrupted by a voice.  
  
"Who the hell are they!!!?!?!" Ivy exclaimed.  
  
"Ssh," Theresa scolded. "Don't use that language in front of my children," she said as she tried to cover the ears of Justin.  
  
"Your children!!!!?" Ethan exclaimed. "You had children with Fox! You let him touch you and become the father of your children!!?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"And why is that so hard to believe?" Fox asked indignantly. "You certainly didn't think that she'd let you be the father of her children, especially not after the way you treated her."  
  
"That's between Theresa and I - stay out of it," Ethan replied.  
  
"Well Theresa's my wife, and her business is my business," Fox said confidently.  
  
"Why you little-"  
  
"All right stop it!" Sheridan exclaimed. "We're not going to have this discussion in the middle of a hospital waiting room."  
  
"Sheridan's right," Julian agreed. "The tabloids would have a field day with this. Luis needs to rest so he and Sheridan are going back to the cottage and the rest of you are coming to the mansion so that we can talk about all of this," he said.  
  
"No way," Luis said. "There is no way that I'm missing this discussion, I'm going to the mansion with you."  
  
"Luis, you just got shot, you're going home," Theresa said as she continued to bounce Justin up and down  
  
"No, I'm not. I'm going to the mansion to find out what the hell you've been doing for the past five years," he said in a voice that left no room for argument.  
  
"There's no point in arguing over this, let's just get out of here," Sheridan said.  
  
"Theresa, do you need a ride?" Ethan asked, not noticing the dark look that came across Gwen's face.  
  
"That won't be necessary Ethan," Fox said. "My wife and I have our limo waiting outside," he said with a smile. "We'll see you at the mansion," he added before putting his arm around Theresa's waist and walking out of the hospital with their children and Charles. Ethan glared at the back of Fox's head.  
  
"Ethan, honey, are you ready?" Gwen asked.  
  
"Huh? Yeah, sure, let's hurry up and get to the mansion to hear what they have to say," he said, taking Gwen's hand and practically running out of the hospital.  
  
"Do we have to be there? It really has nothing to do with us, let's just go out for the night," Gwen said, not wanting Ethan to be anywhere around Theresa.  
  
"We should be there, I want to know where Fox has been," Ethan lied, not really caring about Fox.  
  
"Since when did you care about Fox," Gwen asked as they reached their car.  
  
"Since he had two kids and made me an uncle. I should be there for my niece and nephew," he lied.  
  
"Whatever," Gwen muttered to herself as she settled into her seat and began to prepare herself for a night that she knew she would hate.  
  
Twenty minutes later, everyone was crowded around the Crane living room, awaiting the arrival of Fox and Theresa. They only had to wait a few more minutes before Fox entered the mansion, followed by Theresa who was pushing the twin stroller that held a sleeping Justin and Jessica.  
  
"All right, you're here, now start explaining," Ivy demanded. Theresa and Fox simply ignored her.  
  
"Dr. Russell, do you mind if place them in a room upstairs before we get started?" Theresa asked Eve.  
  
"Of course not, dear," Eve replied. "Come on, I'll find a room for them," she said.  
  
"You can just put them in my room, Resa," Whitney cut in. "It's the third door on the left," she instructed.  
  
"Thanks Whit," Theresa replied with a smile as she and Fox took Jessica and Justin out of the stroller and headed toward the staircase.  
  
"You better hurry up because we want answers," Ivy threatened.  
  
"Oh, shut up, Ivy," Eve said in an annoyed voice.  
  
"Yes, please do, your voice is very irritating," Sheridan agreed. Ivy huffed in response before turning to glare at the retreating forms of Fox and Theresa.  
  
When Fox and Theresa reached Whitney's room, the softly placed Jessica and Justin beside each other on her bed. Theresa sat on the bed beside Justin and lightly ran her hands through his hair. Fox, seeing that Theresa didn't want to go downstairs yet, laid down at the edge of the bed.  
  
"How long do you think we can stay up here before Ivy sends up the Crane security to come get us?" Theresa asked. Fox laughed at her statement.  
  
"I give her five minutes," he replied as he took her hand in his and started playing with her wedding ring. He could still remember the day he proposed to her years ago.  
  
***********  
  
Fox and Theresa sat in their living room watching a rerun of an old game show. The show had just gone on commercial and Theresa noticed that Fox was acting unusually nervous.  
  
"Fox, are you okay?" she asked in a concerned tone.  
  
"Of - of course I am," Fox stuttered. "Why do you ask?"  
  
"You just seem weird," she replied. "It's like you're worried about something," she added.  
  
"That's ridiculous, what's there to worry about?"  
  
"I don't know, why don't you tell me," Theresa replied with an arched eyebrow.  
  
"I'm fine, so I have no idea what you're talking about," Fox replied.  
  
"All right," Theresa replied, not even pretending to believe Fox. "Fine, anyway, I was thinking about inviting Whitney and Chad over. It's a few months since we've seen them and the last time I talked to her, she was still having problems with her mother. So I thought I'd ju-"  
  
"Marry me."  
  
"Wha - what?" Theresa asked, surprised by Fox's sudden statement.  
  
"I asked you to marry me," Fox said, a little more nervously this time.  
  
"Are you serious?"  
  
"Yes.look, I know that this isn't really the most romantic proposal and I know that most girls dream of dinner and flowers, but if you marry me, I promise I will do my best to make all your dreams come true, and I also prom-"  
  
Theresa quickly leaned over Fox and brought into a soul-shattering kiss, cutting off the rest of his statement. When the need for air became to great, she finally pulled away.  
  
"So, I assume that's a yes," Fox said with a smile.  
  
"You bet your life it is," Theresa replied with a smile before leaning in for another kiss.  
  
************  
  
Fox would never forget how nervous he was that day; he had the ring for almost a month before he finally had the guts to propose to her. He and Theresa were married shortly after in a small Parisian church with Chad, Whitney, and few close friends that they had known.  
  
"Well, we might as well head downstairs, there's no point in delaying the evitable," Theresa said as she rose from the bed.  
  
"How do you think they'll react when they here the other reason we Harmony?" Fox asked as he rose and brought Theresa into his arms.  
  
"They'll either be extremely shocked or extremely outraged, either way it's going to be a long night," Theresa replied.  
  
"Lucky us," Fox said sarcastically. "Come on babe, let's get this over with," he said before taking her hand in his and heading downstairs.  
  
"Nice of you to finally join us," Ethan muttered as Fox and Theresa entered the living room.  
  
"Aww, did you miss us Ethan?" Fox asked with a smile.  
  
"Will you two just sit down and tell us what the hell you've been doing for the past five years?" Ethan asked.  
  
"I really don't know why you're so interested, mine and Theresa's lives are really none of your business."  
  
"Stop stalling and tell us how the two brats came into being," Ivy cut in.  
  
"If you call my children brats again, I swear I'll -"  
  
"You'll what?" Ivy asked, taunting Theresa.  
  
"I'll -"  
  
"All right, enough!" Julian yelled, interrupting Ivy and Theresa. "Now, we all have questions that we want answered, and we aren't go to get anywhere if you two continue to argue."  
  
"Sorry," Theresa muttered. Ivy simply grunted.  
  
"Now the question that I'm sure everyone wants to know is how you, Theresa, went from being in Harmony one day and married with children to Fox the next," Julian said.  
  
"It's simple really," Theresa said. "I left Harmony and went to Paris; I ran into Fox at the airport and he offered to let me live with him in his penthouse -"  
  
"I'll bet he did," Ethan interrupted.  
  
"Anyway," Theresa continued, not bothering to acknowledge Ethan's remark. "I moved in with Fox and since we were already friends, we just became closer. One thing led to another, and here we are," she ended.  
  
"And the children?" Ivy asked.  
  
"Do you really need us to go us into details, Mother? I'm sure you know all about the birds and the bees," Fox said sarcastically.  
  
"Shut up, Fox," Ivy replied.  
  
"What are their names?" Pilar asked, speaking up for the first time.  
  
"Jessica and Justin, they're one and a half years old, they'll be two in a few months," Theresa replied.  
  
"I'm a grandmother?" she asked in shock.  
  
"Yeah, they're so amazing, Mama, you're going to love them," Theresa replied.  
  
"Of course I will," Pilar replied with a smile.  
  
"Why?" Ivy asked simply.  
  
"Excuse me?" Fox asked, knowing that his mother was not going to make to easy for anyone.  
  
"Why Theresa? Jesus, you saw what she did to your brother and you still fell for her. Not only that but you produced children with her! What the hell were you thinking!?" she yelled. Both Theresa and Pilar advanced toward Ivy, preparing to give her a piece of their minds, when Fox stopped both of them with his words.  
  
"Gee, mother, I guess I was thinking that I didn't want to end up old, lonely and bitter like my mother. I bet you would've loved it if I married some damn socialite and forced myself into the same miserable life that you lived for over twenty years."  
  
"Anyone is better than that tramp!" she exclaimed.  
  
"All right Ivy, that's enough. I don't give a damn who you are, no one talks about my sister like that," Antonio said sternly.  
  
"Your sister is going to ruin my son's life!" Ivy exclaimed.  
  
"How the hell would you know what is and isn't good for your son's life, Ivy? You haven't given him the time of day since the day he was born," Theresa said.  
  
"I know you're nothing but trouble," Ivy replied with a glare. "And my relationship with my son is absolutely none of your business."  
  
"We have no relationship, Mother-we never did," Fox said as he scratched his eyebrows.  
  
"Can you two settle this family problem later?" Luis asked in an annoyed voice as he spoke for the first time. "I'd like to know what the hell you and my sister were up to in Paris for five years," he said as he stared at Fox.  
  
"We've actually been running a business," Theresa said quietly. "But that's not important, what's important is that we're here, and we're staying now," she said quickly.  
  
"A business? What kind of business?" Luis prodded.  
  
"It was more of an industry than a business-but like Theresa said, it really isn't important," Fox said.  
  
"Why the hell do I feel like you two are purposely keeping something from us?" Antonio asked, seeing the quick glances between Fox and Theresa.  
  
"I don't know, maybe you're just paranoid," Fox suggested feebly.  
  
"No, I don't think he is, because I'm getting the same feeling," Luis said.  
  
"Luis, just relax, and stop looking at us like we made a deal with the devil," Theresa said. "You and Antonio are just worried and -"  
  
"How did you two know that I was shot?" Luis asked calmly, interrupting Theresa.  
  
"What.what did you say?" Theresa asked.  
  
"I asked you how you knew that I was shot," Luis repeated. "Call me modest, but I doubt that the newspapers in Paris consider me important enough to write about the shooting. So how did you and Fox know that I was shot and how were you able to hear about it so quickly that you arrived only a few hours later?" he asked suspiciously.  
  
"Oh my God," Gwen said, attracting the attention of everyone in the room.  
  
"Gwen, what is it?" Ethan asked, semi-concerned, semi-interested in Fox and Theresa's answer.  
  
"Alistair," Gwen said quietly, in a shocked tone.  
  
"Huh? What about Alistair?" Ethan asked, wondering what Gwen was talking about.  
  
"Don't you remember? When we were all about to leave the hospital, we heard Theresa arguing with the receptionist and she told the lady that her husband's grandfather called her and informed her of Luis's condition; someway or another, Theresa and Fox must have been keeping in touch with Alistair," Gwen said, ending with a smug smile as she thought of the outburst that would surely come from Theresa's brothers. She wasn't disappointed.  
  
"ALISTAIR CRANE!!!!" three voices bellowed at the same time. The first two weren't surprising-they were from Luis and Antonio, after all, it was the last voice, the voice of Ethan, which surprised some people in the room.  
  
"What the hell do you think you're doing by keeping in touch with Alistair Crane!? Don't you know how dangerous of a man he can be?" Antonio asked angrily. Theresa glared at Gwen before trying to explain.  
  
"Antonio, let me explain," Theresa started.  
  
"How the hell can you explain that?" Luis interrupted. "And you," he said, turning to Fox. "You got some nerve putting my sister in Alistair Crane's clutches."  
  
"I didn't put her in anybody's clutches, she's a big girl, she can make her own decisions," Fox said defiantly.  
  
"And her decision just happened to be your grandfather?" Antonio asked bitterly.  
  
"You two don't even know what the hell we've been doing so you have no right to stand there and blame me for anything," Fox said angrily.  
  
"Stop it, all of you," Theresa interrupted. "Fox is right, you don't even know what we've been doing for the past few years so you can't just sit here and make assumptions," she said to Luis and Antonio.  
  
"Oh, then please, enlighten us Theresa," Ivy said with a roll of her eyes. Theresa glared at Ivy before turning to her brothers and replying.  
  
"Yes, it's true that we've kept in touch with Alistair, but it's a really long story," she said.  
  
"Well we've got time, so get started," Luis said before taking a seat.  
  
"Well, it all started a few weeks after Fox and I had gotten married."  
  
************  
  
"Resa, can you get that?" Fox called out from the bedroom after hearing the doorbell ring.  
  
"Sure," Theresa yelled before heading to the door. She opened the door to find a tall, well-built man standing in front of her dressed in an expensive suit. "Can I help you?" she asked.  
  
"You can't, but Fox can. Where is my grandson?" he asked coldly.  
  
"Grandson? Wait.Alistair?"  
  
"The one and only-where's Fox?" he asked as he let himself in.  
  
"He's in the bedroom," Theresa replied nervously before calling out for Fox. "How did you find out where we lived?" she asked.  
  
"I have my ways," Alistair replied nonchalantly as Fox entered the room.  
  
"Grandfather," Fox said, shock evident in his voice and face. "Wha- what are you doing here?"  
  
"I decided to come congratulate the newlyweds," Alistair said with a cruel smile. "After all, that's what you and Theresa are-newlyweds. Although I how can I be sure, seeing as how you two decided to get married without informing anyone," he said icily.  
  
"Yeah about that, your invitation must have gotten lost in the mail somewhere," Fox said uninterestedly. Theresa had to stifle her laugh.  
  
"What the hell were you thinking to go and get married without my consent!?" Alistair exclaimed.  
  
"Your consent? I'm a grown man, Grandfather, I don't need your permission to do anything, especially not choose who I decide to marry," Fox replied.  
  
"Are you forgetting who I am?" Alistair asked in a threatening voice, not liking Fox's calm attitude.  
  
"No, but you seem to be forgetting that I, unlike everyone else, am not easily swayed by your power," Fox replied.  
  
"Is that so?" Alistair asked in a semi-amused voice.  
  
"Yes it is. You see, besides Julian, I'm the only heir left, and I'm the only one that can give you an heir, so there is no way that you'd do anything to jeopardize my life-because that in turn would jeopardize the future of Crane Industries," Fox replied confidently.  
  
"And what about your little wife, over there?" Alistair asked, pointing to Theresa. "Do you think I wouldn't do anything to jeopardize her life?" he asked. Before Fox could reply, Theresa cut in.  
  
"You aren't going to do a damn thing to me Alistair, so don't bother with the empty threats," she said.  
  
"And why not? Why wouldn't I just get rid of you now?" Alistair asked.  
  
"For one thing, you and I both know that without me, you have no heir," she started.  
  
"Fox could always remarry," Alistair cut in.  
  
"But you know he wouldn't. If you've been watching us, like I'm sure you have, you know that Fox loves me too much to remarry."  
  
"I could work around that after I got rid of you" Alistair said.  
  
"Maybe you could, but you'd have to catch me first, and you know for a fact that I'll be damned if I let you get you claws on me," she said boldly. Alistair smiled at Theresa's response.  
  
"You're a feisty one, Theresa. You might actually be able to survive in this family this time around," he said.  
  
"Oh, I'll definitely survive; there's no way you're keeping me away from Fox," she said confidently.  
  
"All right, let's see how well you do," he said before holding his hand out for Theresa. Theresa instantly shook his hand, not hesitating for a second. "Welcome to the family, Theresa. Good luck dealing with us," he said.  
  
"And good luck dealing with me," Theresa replied with a smile. Alistair turned back Fox.  
  
"You may have actually done something right, for once in your life," he said to Fox.  
  
"Oh, go to hell," Fox replied aggravatingly, not wanting to hear another speech about what a failure he was.  
  
"I probably will," Alistair replied. "Anyway, I've wasted enough time here, I have other business to attend to," he said as he headed toward the front door. "This was entertaining, I'm sure I'll be seeing you two soon," he said before walking out the door without a backwards glance. ***********  
  
"All right, so Alistair came to visit you after you got married. The only thing that story shows me is that he threatened to kill you. Tell why you two continued to keep in touch with him," Luis said.  
  
"Let me finish, Luis," Theresa said.  
  
"Fine, hurry up," he replied.  
  
"All right, so after that visit, we hadn't seen Alistair for about five or six months. Then one day."  
  
***********  
  
Theresa opened the front door to see Alistair standing there in his usual black suit.  
  
"Alistair, what an unpleasant surprise," she said sarcastically as she let him in. Although she and Alistair hadn't seen each other since his last visit, they had talked occasionally whenever he called to speak with Fox and most of their conversations consisted of one sarcastic remark after another.  
  
"Always nice to see you too, Theresa," Alistair replied with the same sense of sarcasm. "Where's Fox?" he asked, not wasting time with pleasantries.  
  
"You know, generally, it's normal for someone to be kind and polite to someone when you visit them after five months."  
  
"Gee, thanks, I'll be sure to add that to my list of manners-I'll put it right under please and thank-you," he replied with a fake smile.  
  
"You're such a bastard, sometimes," she replied with a roll of her eyes.  
  
"Why, thank-you, Theresa," Alistair replied with a smile. "Now where is my grandson?"  
  
"Right here," Fox said as he entered the room and headed over to shake hands with Alistair. "What are you doing here?" he asked.  
  
"I have a proposition for you," Alistair said as he took a seat on the couch. He waited for Fox and Theresa to sit down before continuing. "Now, as I'm sure you've heard, Julian and Eve recently married," he said bitterly.  
  
"Eve Russell is a wonderful woman," Theresa said, quickly coming to Eve's defense.  
  
"I'm sure she is, but the fact of the matter is she reminds Julian of everything he wants, and that, unfortunately, does not include running the Crane Empire," Alistair replied.  
  
"And you telling us this because." Fox asked wondering what Alistair's point was.  
  
"Because I'm going to need you to run the Crane Empire when I step down, since Julian refuses to," Alistair said.  
  
"And when exactly do you plan on 'stepping down'" Theresa asked warily.  
  
"Sometime within the next year," Alistair replied.  
  
"Are you serious? You can't just come here and tell him that he has to drop everything and take over an entire company because you want to go into an early retirement," Theresa said incredulously.  
  
"It's his birthright, he doesn't have a choice," Alistair argued.  
  
"Yeah, but you could have at least let me know about this earlier, Grandfather. I can't just drop my life in Paris to run the company in Harmony," Fox said.  
  
"So you're going to just ignore the chance to run the empire?" Alistair asked in disbelief.  
  
"If it means that I have to make the decision now, then yes," Fox replied.  
  
"Why?" Alistair asked, almost pleaded.  
  
"Because unlike you, Fox doesn't live, breathe, and dream of power and money," Theresa said, answering for Fox.  
  
"Must you persist in annoying me?" Alistair asked Theresa irritatingly.  
  
"Of course, otherwise my day isn't complete," Theresa replied with smile. She loved it when Alistair was annoyed but couldn't do anything to stop it- it showed how powerless he could be at times.  
  
"What if we made a compromise?" Alistair asked.  
  
"I'm listening," Fox and Theresa said at the same time. Alistair rolled his eyes at Theresa before replying.  
  
"What if I were to build a Crane Empire outlet somewhere around here? You could run it, learn everything you need to learn, and when you're ready and comfortable, you can run the branch in Harmony."  
  
"Really?" Fox and Theresa asked at the same time again.  
  
"Yes, it'd be perfect, actually. This way you'll be an expert at being a businessman by the time you go back to Harmony."  
  
"That does sound good," Fox said.  
  
"It's perfect, and you'll be able to run the company the way you want, not the way someone else wants you to," Theresa said, looking pointedly at Alistair. Alistair simply rolled his eyes.  
  
"All right, I'll do it, but on one condition," Fox said.  
  
"What?" Alistair asked.  
  
"Theresa works right beside me as my partner and helps me run the company," Fox said.  
  
"What!?" Alistair and Theresa asked, both equally shocked and surprised.  
  
"Fox, are you crazy? There's no way that would work," Theresa said.  
  
"Why not? You and I always work well together. Could you imagine us as leaders of the number one company? We'd be unstoppable, we'd bring in millions," Fox said, trying to encourage Theresa.  
  
"We would be pretty hard to turn down," Theresa said as she pondered Fox's words. "Okay! Let's do it!" she said excitedly as reached over and hugged Fox.  
  
"Wait, wait!" Alistair exclaimed. "There is no way I'm allowing her to run the Crane Empire," he said firmly.  
  
"And why not?" Fox challenged. "You know she'd be good, you can't deny how determined and confident she can be, no one would get away with anything with her around," Fox insisted. Alistair simply kept his firm expression  
  
"Come on Alistair," Theresa said with a small smile. "You know that Fox and I could bring millions, maybe billions, to the Crane Empire, you might as well say yes now instead of arguing and saying yes an hour later," she said as she tried to crack his stony expression.  
  
"And what makes you think I'll say yes at all?" he asked.  
  
"Because I always get what I want when I work hard enough-it's usually just a matter of time," Theresa replied with a smile. Alistair continued to stare at Theresa before finally cracking and allowing an exhausted expression to come across his face.  
  
"You are unbelievably tiring, you know that right?" he asked Theresa as he rubbed his forehead.  
  
"Yes, Fox tells me that all the time, but I take it as a compliment," Theresa replied with a wave of her hand. "Anyway, don't worry Alistair, you won't regret this," she said as she linked her arm in Fox's.  
  
"That's right, Grandfather. We'll make sure of that," Fox said.  
  
"For some reason, I don't doubt you will," he replied as he watched the two of them stand together in front of him. Fox was right; he and Theresa were not a force to be reckoned with.  
  
"So, do we have a deal?" Fox asked.  
  
"Yes, I believe we do," Alistair said as he shook hands with Fox and Theresa. "I'll get started on constructing the Crane Industry outlet and I'll keep in touch with both of you," he said as he headed for the door.  
  
"Hey, Alistair!" Theresa said, stopping Alistair from leaving the room. Alistair turned around, expecting a sarcastic remark to fall from Theresa's lips. He was shocked by what did come out of her mouth.  
  
"Thanks," she said with a smile.  
  
"You're welcome," Alistair replied with a genuine smile of his own before leaving their penthouse. ***********  
  
"Let me get this straight, for the past few years you and Fox have been running a branch of Crane Industries in Paris?" Julian asked.  
  
"Yes, Father, that is correct," Fox replied.  
  
"And why didn't your grandfather tell me about this?" he asked Fox.  
  
"Probably because he knew you wouldn't be interested," Fox replied.  
  
"I see, and now you and Theresa are here to take over the company?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, Julian, that's true," Theresa replied.  
  
"Over my dead body," Luis said. "There is no way you're running that company and getting sucked into that lifestyle," he said.  
  
"You don't have much of a say in this Luis. I enjoy what I do and I'm not going to stop," Theresa said.  
  
"Theresa, Luis is right, look at what running the company did to Alistair; he's so driven by power and money that he cares about nothing else," Pilar said.  
  
"I won't turn out like that, Mama," Theresa insisted. "Besides, you have to be strong and cold sometimes in this business to get what you want," she said.  
  
"I did not raise me daughter to have a career where it's acceptable to be emotionless," Pilar said.  
  
"It's nothing like that, Pilar," Fox said, coming to Theresa's defense. "We've been doing this for four years and as you can see, Theresa is still the loving and caring person she was when she left Harmony."  
  
"No she's not, she's different. My Theresa wouldn't threaten a receptionist with her job; my Theresa wouldn't join forces with Alistair Crane, a devil in every since of the word."  
  
"And your Theresa would probably still be crying over the loss of her first love," Fox said. "Maybe she's changed a little, but she's changed for the better. She's stronger than she's ever been before."  
  
"And I suppose that's all thanks to you?" Ethan asked coldly.  
  
"Why do you ask, Ethan? Are you upset that Theresa finally had the courage to get over you?" Fox taunted.  
  
"Ethan could care less what Theresa does," Gwen cut in.  
  
"Why don't you let your husband answer Gwen," Fox said as he continued to stare at Ethan.  
  
Before Ethan could answer, everyone heard the sound of cries fill the room. Fox and Theresa immediately rushed up the stairs and into Whitney's room. They reemerged a few minutes later with a fully awake Jessica and Justin in their arms. Everyone in the room watched as Fox fed Justin some baby food while Theresa sat on the couch and began to play with Jessica. No one could deny the closeness of their family. Eventually, Fox and Theresa noticed that all eyes were on them.  
  
"Sorry," Theresa apologized.  
  
"Don't worry about it," Eve said. "They're beautiful children," she said as she looked at them.  
  
"Thank you," Fox said as Justin began to cry.  
  
"They're getting fussy, we better get going," Theresa said as she rose from the chair with Jessica in her arms.  
  
"Where are you staying?" Pilar asked.  
  
"We're going to stay in a hotel until our house is finish," Fox replied.  
  
"House?"  
  
"Yeah, we're having our house built, it was supposed to be done in a few months, which is when we planned to move here. But with the shooting and everything, it just got pushed up," Fox replied.  
  
"You can't live in a hotel for a few months-you can stay here," Eve suggested, not noticing the glint of hope that appeared in Ethan's eyes at her suggestion  
  
"No, no, no," Theresa replied quickly, seeing Ethan's reaction. "We'll be fine in a hotel."  
  
"Nonsense," Pilar said. "You four will stay with me. Theresa, you guys can just take your old room," she said.  
  
"What do you think?" Theresa asked as she looked up at Fox.  
  
"It's fine with me, if it's fine with you," Fox said as he tried to calm down a still crying Justin.  
  
"All right, Mama, we'll stay with you," Theresa said.  
  
"Okay, let's go," Pilar said as she began to gather her things.  
  
"Theresa, this conversation isn't over," Antonio said.  
  
"Not by a long shot," Luis added.  
  
"Fine, we'll discuss this tomorrow. I'll see you both later," she said as she reached up and gave both of them, along with Miguel, a light kiss on the cheeks. She then went over and gave Whitney a quick hug before heading toward Fox and Pilar.  
  
"Are you ready?" Fox asked.  
  
"Yeah, let's get out of here," she replied.  
  
"Goodnight, Theresa," Ethan called out, upset that he didn't get to spend any time with her. Theresa gave Ethan a small nod before muttering a quick 'goodbye' and leaving the Crane mansion with Fox, Pilar, and her children.  
  
TBC.  
  
Please, please leave feedback and tell me what you think!!! I really want to know if you guys liked this chapter and the concept of the flashbacks, if so, I may put various flashbacks of Fox an Theresa's life in Paris. So let me know!!!! 


	5. Chapter 5

I really didn't see too much a reason to include Miguel in some of the Lopez-Fitzgerald scenes, so when he's not there, we'll just pretend he's at the Bennett household or something. Now, on to the story!!!  
  
Chapter 5  
  
Theresa blinked as the morning sun shone through her window. She looked around her, not quite recognizing her surroundings. Suddenly, last night's events came rushing back to her and she turned to her left to see Fox sleeping peacefully next to her. Not wanting to wake him, Theresa quietly got out of bed and walked over to the two cribs set up by her bed to check on Jessica and Justin. Noticing the unsteadiness of Pilar's old cribs, Theresa mentally noted that she and Fox would have to go shopping for baby beds. Satisfied that both Jessica and Justin were sleeping peacefully, Theresa grabbed her robe and headed out of her room.  
  
"Good Morning, Mama," Theresa said when she saw Pilar sitting on the couch in the living room.  
  
"Good Morning, mija," Pilar replied as she made room for Theresa on the couch. "How was your sleep?"  
  
"It was okay," Theresa replied as she sat down and laid her head on Pilar's shoulder. "I really missed you, Mama," she said.  
  
"I missed you too, Theresita," Pilar replied. "I still wish you would have come and talked to me about how Ethan treated you instead of just deciding to leave the country."  
  
"I know, Mama. I really shouldn't have left the way I did, but I was so sad and heartbroken and I knew that you would just try to talk me out of it," Theresa replied.  
  
"That doesn't mean that I couldn't have helped you with your pain."  
  
"I know, I know," Theresa said with a sigh. "But despite the way I left or my reasons for leaving, I don't regret it. I can almost guarantee that if I didn't leave, I would still be here moping over Ethan."  
  
"Maybe so, but what if something had happened to you, no one would have known," Pilar said.  
  
"Whitney and Chad would have known, and they would have told you," Theresa insisted.  
  
"Whitney? But she told me that she didn't know where you wen-" Pilar cut herself off when she realized that Whitney had lied. "Of course, I should have known. You and Whitney never keep anything from each other."  
  
"It's not really Whitney's fault-I told her not to tell anyone," Theresa said, wanting to defend Whitney. "I know she really wanted to tell you, especially every time she and Chad came to visit me and returned only to keep the visit a secret."  
  
"Despite the fact that she lied to me, I'm glad that she was able to constantly visit you, at least I know you weren't lonely those first few months you were in Paris," Pilar said.  
  
"Well, I did have Fox, he made sure to keep me company," Theresa said, smiling at thought of Fox.  
  
"Yes, Fox.care to explain how that happen?" Pilar asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"Not if you're just going to give me a long speech about what a bad person he is and what a big mistake I've made," Theresa replied, quickly preparing to defend Fox.  
  
"No, no, I have no right to do that," Pilar said quickly, wanting to calm Theresa down. "Sure, I have my opinions about Fox, but I know that you wouldn't have married him if you didn't think he was perfect for you."  
  
"Oh, okay," Theresa said, calming down. "I'm sorry, it's just.I know that a lot of people didn't approve of Fox because they formed an unfair opinion of him years ago, and I just don't want anyone telling me how good or bad he is for me."  
  
"Don't worry, mija, you have my full support behind your marriage, although I would have liked to be at the wedding," she hinted.  
  
"I know, I know," Theresa said as she put her head in her hand. "We just really wanted it to be small and private, and inviting you and the rest of the family would have alerted too much attention in Harmony," she said.  
  
"I understand," Pilar replied with a smile. "So, what exactly motivated you and Fox to become a couple-from what I remember, you two were just really good friends," she asked with a curious smile.  
  
"It actually started after we had been living together for four months and I had finally gotten over Ethan."  
  
***********  
  
"Resa, for the hundredth time, could you please not leave your bra, panties, and other undergarments laying around the house!!" Fox yelled from the bathroom as he tripped over another one of Theresa's undershirts.  
  
"Sorry!" Theresa yelled from the living room.  
  
"Sorry," Fox repeated. "I freaking trip and almost bust my ass and all she says is 'sorry'," he muttered as he made his way to the living room. Upon entering, he saw Theresa sitting on the couch dressed in nothing but a bra and a pair of shorts, flipping through the channels.  
  
"What, did you run out of shirts? Because I'm sure there's some laying around the floor of every room in here," he said as he took a seat beside her and handed her the shirt that he tripped over.  
  
"Very funny," Theresa said sarcastically as she slipped on the tank top. "For your information, I planned on going shopping, but I spilled juice on my shirt, so it's currently in the washing machine," she said, not taking her eyes off of the television.  
  
"Why don't you just wear another shirt," he said.  
  
"Because that means I'd have to change my entire outfit, and that takes too much time," she said.  
  
"But washing a shirt and waiting for it to dry doesn't?" he asked, not quite understanding her reasoning.  
  
"Don't you have something to do? Why don't you go hang out with your friend Dylan or something," she said, not appreciating Fox making fun of her.  
  
"Can't-he went to Italy with some chick he met last week," Fox replied.  
  
"So, that girl should expect to wake up alone and with a broken heart by the end of the week, I suppose," Theresa said, knowing how much of a playboy Dylan was with ladies.  
  
"Probably," Fox said with a shrug.  
  
"I don't know why you hang out with him," Theresa said with a roll of her eyes.  
  
"He's a great friend, and for a while, he was the only friend I had. I don't know why you have a problem with him, he's been nothing but nice and respectful towards you," Fox said.  
  
"I know, and I don't have a problem with him, he can be really sweet and funny sometimes. I have a problem with the way he makes girls believe that he cares about them, and then drops them like yesterday's trash," she said.  
  
"It's not like that," Fox said, trying to explain. "Dylan never pretends to want anything more than sex and a good time. He doesn't lead them on and make them believe that he's in love, the girls just prefer to believe that he is."  
  
"It still isn't right, no girl should be left high and dry the way Dylan leaves them."  
  
"And how would you know how Dylan leaves his girls?" Fox asked.  
  
"I've heard the stories he's told you whenever he comes to visit- they're not pretty," she replied.  
  
"So you've been spying on me now?" Fox asked with a smug smile.  
  
"Don't flatter yourself, Fox. I just happened to overhear a few conversations," Theresa replied. ***********  
  
"Wow, this Dylan guy sounds like trouble," Pilar said, interrupting Theresa's story.  
  
"Yeah, I wasn't that fond of his dealings with women when I first met him, but I've gotten over it. He's actually a good guy if you can look past that, and he's one of my best friends-I love him like another brother; but that's not the point of this story," she said.  
  
"Well, hurry up and get to it, I want to know what started the relationship between my daughter and son-in-law," Pilar said, not so patiently.  
  
"I'm getting there," Theresa said. "Now where was I.oh yeah! So anyway, we were talking about Fox's conversations with Dylan."  
  
***********  
  
"Oh you 'just happened to overhear,' yeah sure, I believe that one," he said with smile.  
  
"If you weren't letting me live here rent free, I'd do some damage to you," she said.  
  
"Guess it's a good thing that I'm letting you live here; it's gives me a small amount of power over you," he said, barely containing his laughter at the annoyed expression on Theresa's face.  
  
"You know what, screw the rent," Theresa said before grabbing a pillow off the couch and hitting Fox on the head with it. Fox retaliated by grabbing another pillow and hitting Theresa in the face. Shocked, Theresa didn't have much time to retaliate before Fox hit her in the face again. Not wasting anymore time, Theresa started hurdling all of the pillows at Fox, not giving him a chance to breathe.  
  
"Hey!" Fox yelled, before getting another pillow thrown at him. "Oh that's it!" he yelled as Theresa whacked up upside the head. He made a grab for her, but only grabbed air as Theresa jumped off the couch and made a dash for her room. Not wasting time, Fox quickly followed, reaching her room before she could close and lock the door. Grabbing her, he knocked both of them on her bed, with her on top of him.  
  
"I think you may have left bruises," Fox said in a boyish voice.  
  
"With pillows? Highly unlikely, Nicky," Theresa said with a laugh.  
  
"Nicky?" Fox asked with a smirk.  
  
"Yes, it is your birth name after all and it's cute," she said with a smile. "Besides, since no one calls you by that, I'll be the first and only. It's reserved for me and me only, you let that know to all those girls you decide to date," she said.  
  
"Yes, ma'am," Fox replied with a laugh. It was at that moment that he and Theresa realized that Theresa was still laying on top of him.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry," Theresa said as she tried to pull herself off of Fox, but Fox wouldn't let her go.  
  
"No! Stay," he said quickly, not wanting to lose the comfort of Theresa's body.  
  
"Why?" Theresa asked.  
  
"Because.because," he trailed off, not knowing what to say.  
  
"Because you want to do this?" Theresa said before leaning and capturing Fox's lips in a sweet but passionate kiss. Both she and Fox were surprised by her action, but neither wasted time in getting into the kiss. Before either of them knew it, Fox had Theresa pinned on the mattress and was trailing kisses down her jaw line. Theresa reached down and started to take Fox's shirt off when his voice stopped her.  
  
"No, no, we can't do this now," he said.  
  
"What? Why not?" she asked, worried that she had done something wrong.  
  
"Because you deserve better," he stated. "If we're going to be together, we're going to do it like any other couple, complete with dates and everything," he said. Theresa couldn't help but smile at his statement.  
  
"All right, lover boy, when do you want to have this aforementioned date?" she asked with a smile.  
  
"How about tomorrow night? We can go wherever you want," he replied.  
  
"Sounds great," Theresa said with a big smile as Fox climbed off of her.  
  
"Tomorrow it is then," he said as he made himself comfortable next to her. "So what do we do now?" he asked.  
  
"Well, I go shopping," she said, noticing the disappointed look that came across Fox's face. "And you join me," she added, finding joy in the shocked and dismayed expression that now appeared on his face.  
  
"Shopping? No way, I don't do shopping," he said determinedly.  
  
"Well, there's a first time for everything, Nicolas. Now come on," she said as she dragged him out of her bed and started to lead him out of her room.  
  
"Fine, but don't call me Nicolas, it's bad enough that you're calling me Nicky," he said with a pout.  
  
"Oh shut up," Theresa said as she continued to drag him out the house. ***********  
  
"And the rest is pretty much history. We went on the date, then another, and another and we fell in love; five years later and we're married with children," Theresa said as she ended her story.  
  
"That's a very interesting way to fall in love," Pilar said with a smile. "Leave it to you and Fox to start off a relationship with a pillow fight," she said as she laughed at the image.  
  
"I know what you mean," Theresa said as she joined Pilar in the laughter.  
  
"What's so funny?" Fox asked as he entered the living room with Justin in his arms.  
  
"Morning, baby," Theresa said as Fox took a seat beside her. "Mama and I were just laughing at the day that you and I first kissed," Theresa explained.  
  
"Ohh," Fox said with a smile as he remembered that day.  
  
"How was your sleep, Fox," Pilar asked.  
  
"It was great, Pilar," Fox replied.  
  
"Where's Jessica?" Theresa asked.  
  
"She's still sleeping, but Justin was already awake when I woke up," Fox replied.  
  
"Really? I'm surprised he didn't cry to alert me of his awakening," Theresa said as she smoothed Justin's rumpled hair.  
  
"Well that's because he's a big boy and doesn't need to cry, right little guy?" Fox said as he looked Justin. Justin smiled in response. "See, he understands me," Fox said with a proud smile.  
  
"Whatever you say, honey," Theresa said, unable to hide her smile at the site of Fox talking to Justin.  
  
"Can I hold him?" Pilar asked quietly.  
  
"Of course," Fox said as he handed Justin to Pilar. "Don't worry if he cries though, he doesn't really like strangers holding him," he added. As soon as he let go, Justin started to cry.  
  
"It's okay, baby, I'm your grandmother and I'm always going to be here for you," Pilar said, trying to calm Justin down. "I plan to spoil you and your sister for the rest of your lives, and whenever you want to get away from Mommy and Daddy for awhile you and your sister can just come to me," she said. Gradually, Justin stopped crying and eventually gave Pilar one of his adorable giggles.  
  
"Wow," Fox said in amazement. "It took us weeks before he would allow any of our friends to hold him."  
  
"He just needed the special grandma touch," Pilar said as she smiled down at Justin.  
  
"Well, as long as both of you are up, I'm going to take a shower and get ready," Theresa said as she rose from the couch.  
  
"Yeah, you should; Antonio and Luis said they'd stop by this morning to talk to you," Pilar said.  
  
"I bet they did," Theresa muttered. "You might want to leave before they get here," Theresa said, turning to Fox.  
  
"And let you face the wolves alone, never," Fox said, despite the temptation to leave and preserve his life. "I can handle your brothers," he added.  
  
"We'll see," Theresa said with a smile. "Look out for Jessica," she said before turning and heading towards the bathroom and leaving Pilar and Fox and Justin.  
  
"Congratulations," Pilar said finally after a few seconds of silence.  
  
"Excuse me?" Fox asked confused.  
  
"Due to the commotion of last night, I never congratulated you and my daughter on your marriage, so congratulations," Pilar explained.  
  
"Thank you, Pilar," Fox said, surprised that Pilar didn't hate him.  
  
"Anytime, now why don't you watch this little one while I go make breakfast," she said as she handed Justin to Fox.  
  
"No problem," Fox replied before Pilar left. "It's just you and me, buddy, what do you say we go back to sleep," Fox suggested to Justin. Suddenly, a bad smell surrounded him. "Or we could change your diaper, whichever works for you," he said as he carried Justin to Theresa's room to change Justin's diaper.  
  
A few hours later, Fox, Theresa, Jessica, and Justin were sitting in the living room floor playing with a few toys. Pilar had left a little while earlier to run some errands and left the house to the four of them.  
  
"When are your brothers going to arrive," Fox asked as Jessica and Justin entertained themselves with a train set.  
  
"I don't know," Theresa said as the doorbell rang. "There's your answer," she said before getting up to open the door. "Hey guys!" Theresa said with a smile as Antonio, Beth, Luis, and Sheridan entered the house.  
  
"Hi, Theresa," Sheridan and Beth said.  
  
"Hey sis," Luis and Antonio added with a smile as they reached down and gave her a kiss on the cheeks. "Where's Mama?" they asked.  
  
"She went to run some errands," Theresa said as she headed into the living room.  
  
"Oh, you're still here," Luis said rudely when he saw Fox sitting on the floor.  
  
"Yes, Luis, I haven't run out on Theresa like you expect me to," Fox said with a roll of his eyes.  
  
"Don't start," Theresa said to Fox, knowing how defensive he got when someone questioned his motives.  
  
"Theresa, we came to talk with you, alone," Antonio said, putting emphasis on the word 'alone'.  
  
"I suppose that's my cue to leave," Fox said sarcastically as he picked up Jessica and Justin. "Whether you two like it or not, I am married to Theresa and she is the mother of my children, so you guys are stuck with me just like I'm stuck with you-deal with it," he said before heading into the kitchen.  
  
"You didn't have to say it like that," Theresa said with a glare to Antonio. "And why does he have to leave, but Beth and Sheridan, no offense, get to stay?" she asked.  
  
"It's different," Luis started to explain, but Sheridan cut him off.  
  
"You're right, Theresa. Beth and I will be in the kitchen with Fox and the kids," she said before heading to the kitchen with Beth.  
  
"All right, we're alone, go ahead and talk," Theresa said as she took a seat on the couch.  
  
"Care to explain why you married Fox Crane of all the men in the world?" Luis asked.  
  
"No, I don't, I don't ask you to justify your relationships with Beth and Sheridan so you shouldn't ask me to justify mine with Fox," she said.  
  
"Fine, you don't want to talk about that, then we won't. We will, however, talk about this so-called partnership you have with Alistair Crane," Luis said.  
  
"What do you want to know?" Theresa asked with a sigh.  
  
"Why? You know his reputation, why would you get involved with him?"  
  
"Aside from the fact that he's my husband's grandfather, I was interested. How many times in your life do you get to run an entire company with the one you love the way you want? The idea of running an empire with Fox and making our dreams come true was too good of an offer to pass up," she explained.  
  
"What dreams could you possibly have in the Crane Empire?" Antonio asked.  
  
"Fashion, for one thing," Theresa said. "I've been able to work on a Crane fashion line and if it succeeds, it'll be great for the company and I'll be doing something I've always wanted."  
  
"Did you really need Alistair Crane's help?"  
  
"Probably not, but it's always helpful," Theresa said. "I know how you feel about him, but you haven't spent the last five years around him. I know Alistair and I know the way he thinks, and I can handle him. Besides, I've grown on him, although he'd never admit it, and I know that somewhere in there, he does care about me."  
  
"Just promise me you'll be careful around him," Antonio said. "I don't care how well you think you know him, just be careful."  
  
"Fine, if that'll make you both happy, I'll watch my back around him," Theresa said, knowing that Alistair was completely harmless to her.  
  
"Good," they said, finding relief in Theresa's promise.  
  
"Since I'm doing this for you, I'd appreciate it if you two gave Fox a chance," Theresa said. Noticing their impending protests, Theresa kept talking. "You don't know him so you can't judge him in anyway. And if you really knew me, you'd know that I wouldn't be with him unless I knew he was completely worth it."  
  
"But, Theresa-"  
  
"No buts," Theresa said. "He's my husband and he's a part of this family, so accept it."  
  
"Fine," they muttered together.  
  
"Good, now when he comes back in here, you're going to nice to him, okay?"  
  
"Yes," they replied.  
  
"Good," Theresa said as she called Fox back into the room. Sheridan and Beth followed him.  
  
"So, everything okay?" Sheridan asked.  
  
"Yes, we reached as understanding," Theresa said with a smile as she took Jessica from Fox's arms. "So, what are you four doing this afternoon?" she asked them.  
  
"Beth and I were going to go shopping, you're welcome to join us," Sheridan said.  
  
"That's okay, Fox and I were planning on checking out Crane Industries today," Theresa replied.  
  
"Really?" Luis asked curiously.  
  
"Yeah, we just wanted check how everything is run and talk to a few of the employers," Fox explained.  
  
"I see," Beth said. "Well if you want, Sheridan and I can take Jessica and Justin with us," she suggested.  
  
"Oh, you don't have to do that, we can handle them," Theresa said, not wanting Beth and Sheridan to feel obligated.  
  
"No, that's okay," Sheridan said. "I'd love to spend the day with my niece and nephew," she said.  
  
"Me too," Beth added.  
  
"Well if you're sure," Theresa said, wanting to be sure.  
  
"Definitely," Beth said as she took Jessica from Theresa's arm while Sheridan took Justin from Fox.  
  
"All right, I'll go get their things," Theresa said before heading to her room. She returned a few minutes later with a huge baby bag. "Everything you'll need is in here. Jessica is very active so you'll have to keep a good eye on her and Justin doesn't like being around unfamiliar faces for too long so he might be a little fussy. Oh, and-"  
  
"Resa, relax, they'll be fine," Fox said interrupting Theresa as he put his hands on her shoulders. He knew that she hated leaving Jessica and Justin alone with anyone besides their nanny in Paris. It wasn't that she didn't trust them; she just always worried that they wouldn't be able to handle both Jessica and Justin at the same time.  
  
"You're right, I'm sorry," she said to Sheridan and Beth.  
  
"Don't worry, it's completely understandable," Sheridan said. "So, is that it?" she asked as they prepared to leave.  
  
"Yes, if you need anything, mine and Fox's cell phone numbers are in the side of the bag," Theresa said. "Be good for your aunties," she said as she gave Justin and Jessica a kiss on the forehead.  
  
"Daddy will see you two later," Fox said as leaned and also gave them a kiss. "We'll see you later," he said to Sheridan and Beth.  
  
"Okay, bye," they said before leaving the house.  
  
"So, what are you two doing?" Theresa asked as she turned back to Antonio and Luis.  
  
"We've got to get to work," Luis said as they rose from the couch.  
  
"That's right," Theresa said. "I never did get the chance to congratulate you on making the police force," she said as she pulled Antonio into a hug.  
  
"Thank you, how did you know? Alistair?" Antonio asked.  
  
"No, actually Whitney told me. I was so excited when I found out," Theresa replied.  
  
"Whitney, of course. I knew she was lying when she said she didn't know where you were," Luis said.  
  
"I made her promise not to tell anyone," Theresa said.  
  
"And she agreed, I understand. Anyway sis, we've got to get out of here," Luis said. "We'll see you later," he added as he and Antonio bent down and gave her a kiss on the cheeks.  
  
"We'll see you later, Fox," Antonio said as he held his hand out for Fox. Fox shook it and then shook Luis's hand.  
  
"Goodbye," he said.  
  
"Bye," they said before leaving.  
  
"It's just you and me now," Fox said with a smile as he pulled Theresa into his arms.  
  
"So it seems," Theresa said with a smile. "What do you suppose we do about that?" she asked.  
  
"Well I have a few ideas," Fox said before lifting a giggling Theresa in his arms and leading her to her bedroom.  
  
An hour and a half later, Fox and Theresa emerged from her bedroom, fully dressed, and headed to Crane Industries.  
  
"Who did Alistair say we have to speak to at the company?" Theresa asked as Fox began to drive.  
  
"Just the top employers, he said should definitely meet with a few lawyers, accountants, and the Vice President of Crane Industries," Fox replied.  
  
"But Julian's the Vice President, and he practically resigned," Theresa said confused.  
  
"Yeah, I know. But Grandfather said that since there are no other Cranes willing to run the company, and since you and I are going to be co- presidents and CEO's of the company, he had to hire someone else to be vice president," Fox explained.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"I don't know, he said he'd make his decision this morning, so whoever it is, they probably just found out," Fox replied as he parked his jeep.  
  
"I see," Theresa said as she and Fox got out of the jeep and entered the company. "It's going to be so weird working with a whole different group of people," Theresa said as she passed by the various employers of Crane Industries.  
  
"I know what you mean," Fox said. "I'm so used to walking in the building and being greeted by Moet and Elise," Fox said, referring to the two middle-aged women that were his and Theresa's secretaries in Paris.  
  
"All right, so whom are we meeting first?" she asked as she looked at the little list that Fox had in his hand.  
  
"Grandfather said we just meet Michael Anderson, he's supposed to be the best accountant in the company," Fox said as he took Theresa hand and started to lead her to Mr. Anderson's office.  
  
"Alrighty then, let's get started," Theresa said before they knocked on his door.  
  
A few hours later, Fox and Theresa were roaming the halls tiredly. They had spent the last four or five hours meeting and greeting every employer on Alistair's list and they still had one more person left.  
  
"Is it just me, or does no one seem to want us running this company?" Theresa asked as she remembered the hostile looks she had gotten by the majority of the employers they had met.  
  
"No, it's not just you, I noticed it too. I think a lot of them believe that we're just going to ruin the company and leave them jobless," Fox said.  
  
"Probably," Theresa agreed with a roll of her eyes. "We'll show them," she muttered.  
  
"Of course we will," Fox said, smiling with pride at the determined look on Theresa's face.  
  
"Who's the last person we have to meet?" she asked tiredly; she just wanted to go home and be with her children.  
  
"We have to meet the vice president; since Alistair just picked him or her this morning, I have know idea what their name is," Fox replied as they neared the door with the name plate labeled 'Vice President.' He raised his hand and knocked on the door.  
  
"Come in," a muffled voice said from behind the door. Fox turned the knob and entered with Theresa. He stopped dead in his tracks at the person sitting behind the desk.  
  
"You gotta be kidding me," he said loudly.  
  
"Oh, this is just perfect," Theresa muttered sarcastically with a roll of her eyes.  
  
"Fox, Theresa, it's good to see you," Ethan said as he walked around the desk and came to stand in front of Fox and Theresa.  
  
"You're the new vice president?" Fox asked unbelievably.  
  
"Yes, little brother, I am," Ethan said with a glare. "I guess Alistair just couldn't deny that I was the best man for the job," he added with a smile.  
  
"That, and the fact that he was desperate," Theresa muttered. Before Ethan could comment on her statement, someone breezed into his office.  
  
"Ethan, I found the-" Gwen stopped talking when she noticed Fox and Theresa in the room.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Fox asked tiredly as he rubbed his forehead tiredly. It really didn't matter what reason Gwen had for being there, he was sure he wasn't going to like it.  
  
"Well, Gwen was feeling really idle and bored, and she really wanted something to do during the day, so I hired her as my personal assistant," Ethan explained.  
  
"Wait, so you and Gwen are going to be working here?" Theresa asked, obviously not liking the idea one bit.  
  
"Well, yes," Ethan said. "As vice president, I'll have a lot more work to do, and having a personal assistant will make things much easier," he said.  
  
"So, as vice president, you are most likely going to be working very closely with Theresa and I, right?" Fox asked as he put everything together in his head.  
  
"Yes, that is correct," Ethan confirmed.  
  
"And since Gwen is your personal assistant, she'll most likely be working just as closely with us, am I correct?" Theresa asked as she also tried to process everything.  
  
"Yes, you're right," Ethan confirmed once again.  
  
"So, that basically means that four of us have just become joined at hip," Fox said as he banged his head on the wall.  
  
"Perfect," Theresa groaned as she slumped on to Fox. How the hell were she and Fox supposed to work with the two people that they hated most in the world? With another groan, Theresa slumped even further into Fox with only one thought running through her head. 'I'll get Alistair for this.'  
  
TBC.  
  
Please leave feedback!!! 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

            "I'm going to get some air," Theresa said before quickly leaving Ethan's office.  She barely made it down the hall when Gwen's voice stopped her.

            "Theresa, wait!" 

            "Here we go," Theresa said to herself.  Turning around, she addressed Gwen in a normal tone.  "What do you want, Gwen?"

            "I just want to make sure that you and I reach an understanding before we start working together," Gwen said.

            "Yeah, about that, why the hell would you want to be a personal assistant?  Your father is Jonathon Hotchkiss—all you have to do is call him and you'd have a great job complete with a hefty paycheck," Theresa said.

            "Please, do you honestly think this is about money?" Gwen asked with a roll of her eyes.  "Like you said, Theresa, my father is Jonathon Hotchkiss, money is not an issue in my life.  My reasons for becoming Ethan's personal assistant go beyond money," she explained.

            "Oh really?  Well then enlighten me and tell me why you _really_ wanted this job because I, unlike Ethan, have a hard time believing that you would have a problem with sitting on your ass all day doing absolutely nothing," Theresa said coldly.

            "Did you think that I wouldn't figure out your plan?" Gwen asked with a glare.

            "What plan?" Theresa asked confused.

            "You think I don't know that you hired Ethan as vice president just so that you could work closer with him?  I'm not stupid, Theresa."

            "Apparently you are, because for some reason you think Ethan is worth destroying my marriage and family," Theresa said looking at Gwen as though she were crazy.  "I am a married woman, Gwen, and on top of that I am a devoted mother and I would never ruin that for anyone, especially Ethan."

            "Save the speech, Theresa.  I know you're just trying to get me to believe you're over Ethan so that I'll let my guard down, but that is not going to happen.  I know that you made Alistair promote Ethan as vice president just so that you could have him in your clutches."

            "I _made_ Alistair hire Ethan?  Newsflash, Gwen, no one makes Alistair do anything.  I didn't know about Ethan's promotion, but if I did, you can bet that there would have been no promotion in the first place," Theresa said, her eyes flashing with anger.

            "I'm not buying it," Gwen said angrily.  "You and I are going to set some ground rules about your working relationship with _my_ husband, and we'll start right now."

            "Ground rules!?  I'll give you ground rules!" Theresa exclaimed before being cut off by the ringing of her cell phone.  

Turning away from Gwen, Theresa answered her phone.  Gwen watched as Theresa conversed with the person on her cell phone.  A minute later, Theresa hung up.

"I've got to go," Theresa said as she tried to push past Gwen.  Gwen, however, wouldn't let her and grabbed her arm, preventing her from walking away.

"We're not done," she said in a threatening tone.

"Yes we are," Theresa said angrily as she pulled her arm out of Gwen's grasp.  "You want to work for Ethan, then that's fine.  Just remember that Ethan works for **me** and I don't intend to take any crap from either of you," she said before turning and walking away.

Meanwhile…

            "Vice president, huh?" Fox said as he watched Ethan.  "I guess after all that ass kissing, you finally made it up the social ladder," he said with a smirk.

            "It had nothing to do with 'ass kissing' as you so eloquently put it," Ethan said with a glare.  "It was about hard work, something you'd know absolutely nothing about."  Fox simply rolled his eyes, not giving Ethan the satisfaction of responding to his comment.

            "So, half bro, how has life been treating you these last five years?" he asked as he took a seat on the chair in front Ethan's desk.  Ethan went to sit behind his desk before responding.

            "Why bother asking?  You and I both know that you don't care," he replied.

            "That's very true, but I figured I'd ask anyway, I could use a good laugh," he replied with a smirk.

            "Go to hell, Fox," Ethan replied angrily.

            "Is that any way to talk to your new boss?" Fox asked with a smile.

            "What do you want, Fox?" Ethan asked with a sigh, wanting Fox to leave as quickly as possible.

            "Only one thing—I want you to stay away from Theresa," Fox said seriously.

            "Excuse me?" Ethan asked indignantly. 

            "You heard me.  Theresa and I haven't even been here for 24 hours and already you haven't been able to keep your eyes off her," Fox said.

            "What, are you getting a little intimidated?" Ethan asked with a haughty smirk.

            "By you?  Don't flatter yourself, Ethan," Fox said with a roll of his eyes.  "My marriage to Theresa is as solid as a rock, I have no doubts of where her heart lies and that's with me," he said as he rose from his chair and began to walk around the office.

            "If that's true, then what does it matter how close I am with Theresa?" Ethan asked.

            "It matters because you are a fool and you and Gwen will no doubt bring a load of unnecessary problems into both of our lives," he replied.

            "Sorry to break it to you, Fox, but as vice president, Theresa and I will be working very closely together," Ethan said smugly. 

            "Correction, Theresa, you, and **I** will be working very closely together, not to mention your newly hired wife," Fox said.  He saw Ethan grimace at the mention of Gwen.  "What's the matter, Ethan?  Trouble in paradise?" he asked with a smile.

            "My marriage to Gwen is none of your business," Ethan said stoutly.

            "You're right, it isn't, and quite frankly I could care less about it.  My concern is my family and that includes your relationship with my wife; I intend to make sure that relationship is strictly business."

            "Theresa and I have a long history, one that you'd never understand.  If I decide to be friends or anything else with her, I will, and you can't stop me," Ethan replied.

            "Maybe he can't, but I can," Theresa said from the doorway.  "You and I will never be anything more than business associates, Ethan, don't forget that," she said in a tone that left no room for arguments just as Gwen entered the room.

            "What's going on?" Gwen asked, looking at Theresa accusingly.

            "Nothing," Theresa said before turning to Fox.  "Sheridan just called, she said that she and Beth just returned home with the twins and she's at the cottage," she explained.

            "All right, then let's go," Fox said as he took Theresa's hand in his.

            "I don't think we finished with our discussion, Fox," Ethan said, stopping Fox and Theresa from leaving his office.

            "I believe you did," Theresa said coldly.  "You and Gwen are now working for Fox and I, remember that and you'll both do fine," she said before walking out of the office with Fox.

            "Can you believe the nerve of that bitch!" Gwen exclaimed after Theresa and Fox left.  But Ethan hadn't heard her.  He was still staring at the door, wondering if the strong, determined woman that just walked out of his office was the same girl that he used to, and still did, love with all of his heart.

            "I swear I'll kill him for this!  I can't believe he did this!" Theresa exclaimed as she and Fox breezed into Sheridan's cottage.  She was still angry and seething over the fact that Alistair hired Ethan as vice president.

            "Baby, calm down," Fox said, barely hiding his smile.  He almost felt sorry for Alistair, knowing that Theresa would give him the lashing of his life when she got the chance.  

            "Calm down!?  Do you know how unbelievably irritating it's going to be to work with Gwen?  God, it's like being poked with a thousand needles!"  Fox couldn't stop the laugh that erupted from him at Theresa's comment.  "Stop laughing!  It's not funny!"

            "I'm sorry, Resa," Fox said, though he didn't remove the smile from his face.  

            "Why are you so calm about this?  You hate, Ethan, why aren't you as angry as me?" she asked.  She noticed the dark look that came across his face at the mention of Ethan.

            "Believe me, I'm angry," Fox said seriously.  "And I'd like to let Grandfather know how angry I am, but the bottom line is that you and I both know that we aren't going to get him to change his mind," Fox said.  He watched as the fire in Theresa's eyes died down.

            "I don't know why I put up with that man," she said with a sigh.

            "Because, if you were honest to yourself, you'd admit that you care about him, probably even love him, just like he does for you," Fox said with a smile.

            "Please, Alistair cares about nothing but the Crane name and money," Theresa said, knowing that her statement wasn't true.

            "You know that's not true," Fox said.

            "Maybe not, but I refuse to compliment him after what he did," she said with a childish pout.

            "Fine, we'll be angry at the big bad wolf together, okay?" he asked with a smile.

            "Good," Theresa replied with a smile as she reached up to kiss him.  "I love you."

            "I love you too," Fox said as he wrapped his arm around her.

            "Where is everyone?" Theresa asked as she finally noticed the empty cottage.

            "I don't know," Fox said as he looked around the cottage.  He and Theresa both looked to the door to see a maid enter.

            "Excuse me, do you know where Sheridan is?" Theresa asked the maid.

            "Mrs. Lopez-Fitzgerald is at the Crane mansion.  I just came by to fix up the cottage," she replied.

            "Thank you," Fox said before he and Theresa headed over to the mansion.  They entered the mansion to see Ivy and Rebecca sitting in the living room.

            "What are you doing here?" Theresa asked, knowing that Eve had kicked both of them out of the mansion right before she and Julian got married.

            "Not that it's any of your business, but we're here to see Ethan and Gwen," Rebecca replied rudely.  

            "After all, my son did just get promoted to vice president of Crane Industries," Ivy added with a self-satisfied smile.

            "And let me guess, you're here to congratulate him?" Theresa asked in an uninterested tone.

            "If you must know, yes," Ivy replied with a roll of her eyes.

            "Well I'm CEO of Crane Industries, why don't I get a 'congratulations' from you?" Fox asked in an indifferent tone.  "Oh that's right, I'm not Ethan," he added.

            "You're right, you aren't Ethan, and you never will be," Ivy said coldly.  Fox, in spite of himself, flinched at Ivy's harsh words.  He knew Ivy hated him, and he wasn't too fond of her either, but her words still stung him.  Instead of letting Ivy see how much her words hurt him, Fox immediately put on a cold expression.

            "You're right, I'll never be him.  I guess I should consider myself blessed that you had no part in my life; it'd mean I'd have to have other feelings for you besides hatred," he said icily.  

Ivy gasped at Fox's words; they hit her like a bucket full of ice.  Both Theresa and Rebecca looked at Fox, shocked that he actually said those words to Ivy.  Before Ivy could say anything, Julian and Sheridan entered the living room with Jessica and Justin in their stroller.

"Hello," Sheridan said happily, not noticing the tension in the room.  "How was your day?" she asked Fox and Theresa.

"It was great," Theresa replied, seeing that Fox was still glaring at Ivy.  "How were the twins, did they give you any trouble?" she asked as she bent down and gave Jessica and Justin a kiss on their foreheads.

"No, they were perfect," Sheridan replied with a smile.  At the mention of his children, Fox turned away from Ivy and went to see them.  He bent down and also gave them each a kiss.

"Thanks again for watching them," Fox said to Sheridan.

"It was my pleasure.  Beth and I loved being with them; they just so adorable," she gushed.

"Yes, they truly are.  In fact I was just telling Sheridan how I would love to take them to the park and get to know my lovely grandchildren," Julian said.

"You?" Theresa asked surprised.  "I don't know if that such a good idea," she said, knowing Julian barely knew how to take care of one child, let alone two.

"It's okay, I'll go with him," Fox said.  "I need to get some air anyway," he said as he glanced at Ivy.

"All right, then," Theresa replied.  "I'll wait for you guys," she said.

"Okay," Fox said as he bent down and gave Theresa a kiss on the cheeks.  "We'll be back in about an hour," he said before leaving the mansion with Julian and the children.

"I've got to get home and start making dinner, so I'll talk to you later," Sheridan said as gave Theresa a hug.

"All right, thanks again, Sheridan," Theresa said.

"No problem, I'll see you later," Sheridan said before leaving the mansion.  Theresa turned around to see Rebecca and Ivy glaring at her.

"Are you happy now?  You officially ruined my relationship with my second son," Ivy said accusingly. 

"I didn't do a damn thing," Theresa said with rolling her eyes.  "You did that yourself.  Now if you'll excuse, I'm going to go find Whitney," she said before turning and heading upstairs.  She found Whitney reading a magazine in her room.

"Hey Whit, what's up?" Theresa said as she took as seat beside Whitney on her bed.

"Hey Resa," Whitney said excitedly.  "I was just waiting for my mom to come home, we're supposed to go out tonight," Whitney replied.

"That sounds like fun," Theresa said.

"It should be.  Anyway, how was your day?" Whitney asked.

"Ugh!  You would not believe what happened," Theresa said before she started to tell Whitney of the Ethan/Gwen situation.

"So both Ethan and Gwen are working at Crane Industries?" Whitney asked ten minutes later, after Theresa finished the story.

"Yes, unfortunately, Fox and I are stuck working with both of them," Theresa confirmed.

"Working with who?" Pilar asked as she walked into Whitney's room.

"Mama?  What are you doing here?" Theresa asked as she made room for Pilar on the bed.

"I stopped by the cottage to see Sheridan and she said that you were her," Pilar explained as she gave Theresa and Whitney a kiss on the forehead.  "Now who are you and Fox stuck working with?" she asked.

"Ethan and Gwen," Theresa replied with a groan.

"How?" Pilar asked confused.  Ethan, she was sure could be explained, but she didn't understand how Gwen fit into Crane Industries.

"To make a long story short, Alistair hired Ethan as vice president of Crane Industries and Ethan, in turn, hired Gwen as his personal assistant," she explained.

"Ohh," Pilar said.  "Why would Gwen want to be a personal assistant?" she asked confused.

"To keep an eye on me—she thinks that I'll use this as an opportunity to go after Ethan" Theresa said while rolling her eyes.  "As if he's worth it," she added under her breath. 

"Mija, if you don't mind me asking, what caused these hostile feelings you have for Ethan?  Whitney told me that he said hurtful things to you before you left, but she made it seem as though you were still in pain over losing Ethan; it didn't sound like you were angry with him."

"She's right," Whitney said thoughtfully.  "I mean, I went to visit you two weeks after you left and you were still heartbroken over Ethan's rejection, but I visited a month later and you can barely stand hearing his name, let alone loving him.  What happened to you in that time?"

"It's really not something I like talking about," Theresa said with a sigh as she lay down on the bed.

"Well you don't have much of a choice," Whitney said with a smile.  "Come on, you can tell us," she encouraged.

"It happened after I had been living with Fox for about a month…"

_***********_

_            Theresa sat on her bed, thinking about her life with Ethan.  She still hadn't been able to forget him and although his words hurt her, she still couldn't stop loving him.  Fox stood at her doorway, unnoticed.  He had been watching her closely since she moved in with him and she just seemed to be slipping deeper and deeper into a life of sadness._

_            "You know, Theresa, when I asked you to move in here with me, it wasn't so that you could have a room and bed to stay in and mope over Ethan," Fox said as he lay down beside her on the bed._

_            "I know, I know," Theresa said with a sigh.  "I know I'm not exactly the most fun person to be with right now, I'm sorry."_

_            "Don't apologize, I know that you're in pain.  But come on Theresa, sitting here and moping over Ethan isn't going to help you."_

_            "How am I supposed to move on when I still love him?  Not only that, but I can't just get over him because I still believe that he loves me, despite what he said.  What do I do?" she asked, looking at Fox like he held all the answers._

_            "Call him," Fox said as he reached over and grabbed her phone off the nightstand.   _

_            "What?" Theresa asked in surprise._

_            "Call him," Fox repeated.  "I don't know why, but you still love Ethan.  And until you call him and find out what's really in his heart and get some form of closure, you aren't going to get better.  I personally don't think that Ethan deserves you, but I refuse to sit by and watch as one of my best friends cries herself to sleep every night," he said as he started to dial Ethan's phone number.  "Here," he said as he thrust the phone at Theresa just as Ethan answered._

_            "Ethan Winthrop," Ethan said into the phone._

_            "Eth—Ethan?" Theresa asked quietly._

_            "Theresa?" Ethan asked, shocked to hear the voice he hadn't heard in a month._

_            "Yes, Ethan, it's me," Theresa replied.  _

_            "Theresa, where have you been?  What happened to you?" Ethan asked without thinking.  Suddenly remembering his pain at Theresa's lies, Ethan's tone changed.  "Why are you calling me?" he asked coldly._

_            "I—I wanted to see how you were doing," Theresa stuttered, put off by the tone of Ethan's voice._

_            "I was fine until your phone call," Ethan said icily._

_            "You don't mean that," Theresa said as tears started to form in her eyes._

_            "Yes I do," Ethan lied.  "I don't know why you persist on coming into my life, Theresa, but it's getting quite annoying," he said in an uninterested tone._

_            "Why are you being so mean?" she asked quietly. _

_            "Why should I be kind to someone who's told so many lies to me?" Ethan asked rudely.  _

_            "Ethan, please, let's talk about this.  I know you still love me, I know it!" she said as Fox looked at her sympathetically._

_            "There is nothing to talk about, Theresa.  You and I are through and as far as I'm concerned, leaving Harmony was the best thing you could have done," he said, not wanting Theresa to know how right she was._

_            "Ethan, please, don't say that.  Don't say something you'll regret later," she pleaded._

_            "I won't have regrets, I'm sure of that," Ethan lied.  "I deserve better, someone like Gwen; it's as simple as that," he said, wanting to add salt to Theresa's wounds._

_            "Better?" Theresa exclaimed.  "Gwen will never be better than me, Ethan!  But you're right, you do deserve her, and she deserves you!  You could have had a good thing with me, but you missed it.  I hope you live to regret this day, Ethan Winthrop!" she said angrily before slamming the phone on the receiver._

_            "So, I'm guessing that didn't go well," Fox said slowly as he watched Theresa stare angrily at the phone.  Not knowing what to do, Fox put his arms around her shoulder and was surprised when Theresa broke down in tears.  "Hey, hey, it's okay," he said, trying to calm her down._

_            "He was so mean, Fox.  I know I hurt him, but he was so unnaturally cruel," Theresa said through tears._

_            "He doesn't deserve you," Fox said as he ran his hands up and down her arms.  "At least you know now that he's not worth it."_

_            "It still hurt," Theresa said as she continued to cry into Fox's shoulder._

_            "It's okay," Fox said in a soothing voice.  "I'll help you through it," he said before covering himself and Theresa with a blanket and holding her as she cried herself to sleep._

_***********_

            "After that night, I could feel nothing but hostility toward Ethan," Theresa said as she finished her story.

            "What a bastard," Whitney said angrily as she replayed the story in her head.  

            "Yeah, but I got over it," Theresa said off handedly.  "He's Gwen problem now," she added with a laugh.

            "I almost pity her," Whitney joked.  Pilar and Theresa laughed at her comment.  "Why didn't you tell me about this?" she asked.

            "Because I didn't want to believe it for a while; I didn't want to believe that Ethan could easily cast me out of his life the way that he did.  And after a while, it just made me too angry to think about his words," Theresa replied.

            "I'm sorry," Whitney said sympathetically.

            "Don't worry about it—it's over and done with," Theresa replied with a wave of her hand.  "I'm going to go downstairs and wait for Fox; I want to get the children home soon so that I can give them a bath," Theresa said as she rose from the bed.

            "We'll join you," Whitney said as she and Pilar rose from the bed and headed downstairs with Theresa.  Upon reaching the living room, they saw Ivy and Rebecca talking and drinking with Ethan and Gwen.

            "Look what the cat dragged in," Rebecca said as Theresa entered with Whitney and Pilar.

            "I'll let that slide since I know how bitter menopausal women can be," Theresa replied with a smirk.  

            "That wasn't necessary, Theresa," Ethan said sternly.  Theresa glared at Ethan, but refrained from saying anything as Fox and Julian walked into the living room.

            "Did you guys have fun?" she asked as she gave Fox a light kiss.

            "Yes, it was extremely entertaining," Julian replied.  "Those two are absolutely adorable.  I think they get their looks from me," he said with a smile.

            "God, I hope not," Fox joked.  "You want to get going?" he asked Theresa.

            "Yeah, let's get out of here," Theresa said just as the phone rang.

            "Julian Crane," Julian said into the speakerphone.

            "Julian, let me speak to Fox and Theresa," Alistair said, not wasting time on pleasantries.

            "Nice to hear from you too, Father," Julian said sarcastically as Fox and Theresa headed to the phone.

            "Grandfather," Fox said in acknowledgement.

            "Fox, my boy, how did you like my choice for vice president?" Alistair asked in an amused tone.

            "I don't know about him, but I'll tell you what I think," Theresa said, preparing to give Alistair a piece of her mind.

            "No need to, Theresa.  I can guess what your opinion is," Alistair said in an exhausted tone, knowing that Theresa wouldn't be happy with him.

            "I bet you can," Theresa said angrily.  "What the hell were you thinking?" she asked, shocking everyone in the room except Fox and Whitney.  No one ever talked to Alistair that way; it was just an unspoken rule.  The same residents got another shock at Alistair's response.

            "You know how I love to push your buttons," he replied with a laugh, obviously enjoying himself.

            "Damn it Alistair!  This is not funny!" Theresa said.

            "All right, Theresa," Alistair said after calming down.  "I didn't want to hire, Ethan, because I knew how you and Fox felt about him, but I had no choice.  I needed someone and Ethan was one of the top employers.  Now unless you can think of a better choice, Ethan stays," he said.

            "Fine," Theresa said in a deflated tone as she took a seat by the phone.

            "Now that that's done, how are my great-grandchildren?" Alistair asked genuinely.

            "They're fine," Theresa said, unconsciously turning to Jessica and Justin.  "I'm sure they miss you, though," she added.

            "Tell them that I miss them too," Alistair said, surprising everyone in the room except Fox and Whitney, who had seen Alistair interact with the twins on numerous occasions. 

            "I will," Theresa said.  "Did you need to speak with Fox and I about something else?" she asked.

            "There is an upcoming case I want you and Fox to work on with Ethan, but I'll tell you more about that tomorrow morning at work," Alistair replied.  "I'll talk to you tomorrow," he said before hanging up.

            "Goodbye to you too, Alistair," Theresa muttered sarcastically after Alistair hung up.

            "Since when did you and Alistair become such buddies?" Gwen asked with a hint of jealousy.

            "What business is it of yours?" Theresa asked with a glare.

            "Theresa, Gwen was just asking, you don't have to be rude," Ethan said, coming to Gwen's defense.

            "Well maybe you should tell your wife to mind her own business and stay out of mine," Theresa said as she rose from her chair.

            "Theresa—" Ethan started.

            "Ethan, that's enough," Fox said, interrupting Ethan.  "Theresa has a right to say whatever she wants without having you cut in and telling her how to act.  You take care of your wife and let me take care of mine," he said while glaring at Ethan.  He noticed Ethan involuntarily flinch when Fox referred to Theresa as his wife.

            "I wouldn't brag about the fact that Theresa is your wife, Fox," Rebecca cut in.  "It's not exactly something to be proud about," she added with a smile.

            "And I suppose being the town whore is?" Fox asked with a raised eyebrow.

            "How dare you!" Rebecca exclaimed.  "I do not sleep with just anyone, I—"

            "That's right, Rebecca," Fox interrupted while snapping his fingers as if he had just realized something.  "You only whore yourself to men with large bank accounts," he said with a large smile.  

            "Why you little bastard," Rebecca said angrily.

            "Oh shut up, Rebecca, you know it's the truth," Theresa said as she walked past Rebecca and headed toward the living room entryway.  "And before you start another one of your name calling games, save it—Fox and I have more important things to do than sit here and listen to you," she said after she noticed that Rebecca was about to say something.

            "You two have got some nerve to come in here and start insulting my mother," Gwen said angrily as she got in Theresa's face.

            "Newsflash, Gwen, your mother started insulting us.  Now I suggest to get out of my face," Theresa said coolly, not appreciating seeing Gwen's glaring face so close to her.

            "Or what?" Gwen taunted.  "What the hell are you going to do to me?" 

            "I'll tell you what I'll do," Theresa started before Pilar cut her off.

            "Theresa, that's enough; you know better than to stoop down to her level.  Let's hurry up and get out of here," she said in a stern voice.

            "Fine," Theresa said, while still glaring at Gwen.  

            "Fox, you want to get her while I take the twins?" Pilar asked, seeing that Theresa was still looking at Gwen.

            "Sure, Pilar," Fox said as he made his way over to Theresa and started to pull her away.  "Let's go, baby," he said.

            "I'll see you tomorrow morning, Theresa," Ethan said sheepishly.

            "You'll see _us_ tomorrow morning," Fox said coldly.  "You're working with Theresa and myself, I'd remember that if I were you," he said in a warning tone. Without waiting for a response, Fox turned and left the mansion with Theresa, Pilar, and the twins, leaving an angry and jealous Ethan behind him.    

TBC…

Sorry that this part wasn't that interesting, I'll try harder for the next chapter!  Please leave feedback!!!


	7. Chapter 7

Sorry for the long wait, but I hope you guys like. I had my friend read this before I posted it and she brought something to my attention. I'd just like to state that I'm not trying to make Theresa appear to be a bit*h or make Fox seem like a jerk, I'm just trying to show them as two powerful, strong people. If I happen to offend anyone, please let me know and I'll try to change it. And another thing, I know nothing about business dealings and such so anything relating to business deals or mergers is complete B.S. on my part. Thanks!!  
  
Chapter 7  
  
"Now are you sure you don't mind watching them today?" Theresa asked early the next morning.  
  
"Yeah, because Pilar already agreed to take care of them for the day, you don't have to watch them if you don't want to," Fox added.  
  
"Are you kidding? And miss the chance to spend the day with my lovely godson and goddaughter? No way, I'm taking them for the day and that's final," Whitney said determinedly.  
  
"If you're sure."  
  
"Of course I'm sure, Resa," Whitney said before taking the baby bag Theresa's grasp. "You two just go to work and I'll take care of these adorable children," she said as she cooed at the twins that were laying comfortably in the arms of their parents.  
  
"All right," Theresa said as she and Fox placed Jessica and Justin Whitney's arms. "You know the drill-everything is in the bag and you have my cell number."  
  
"Of course I know, I baby-sat Jessica and Justin numerous times when I visited you in Paris," Whitney replied. "Don't worry about them."  
  
"Okay, well, we'll call you sometime today to check up on them," Fox said as began to his keys from his pocket. "Be good for your Aunt Whitney," he said gently as he bent down and laid a kiss on the foreheads of Jessica and Justin.  
  
"They'll be angels, they always are," Whitney said as she began to bounce them lightly on her hips.  
  
"All right, Mommy loves you and she'll call you as soon as possible," Theresa said to the twins before kissing their cheeks. "You ready?" she asked Fox as she grabbed her purse.  
  
"Yeah," Fox replied. "We'll talk to you later, Whitney," he said as he began to lead Theresa out of the Crane mansion.  
  
"Bye, Whit."  
  
"See you later, Resa," Whitney called out before closing the door. Bending her head, she looked down at the smiling twins in her arms. "We're going to have fun today, aren't we?" she cooed.  
  
"Fun!" Jessica exclaimed with a large smile.  
  
"Yes, that's right, fun!" Whitney said with a big smile. "Now let's go up to my room and start our day of fun," she said as she headed up the stairs. Not really paying attention, she barely missed bumping into Ethan. "Oh, Ethan!" she exclaimed.  
  
"Whoa, I'm sorry, Whitney," Ethan said apologetically. "I'm kind of in a rush," he added, not yet noticing the twins in her arms.  
  
"Next time, be careful, you could have hurt my godchildren," she said harshly, recalling the way he treat Theresa. Ethan noticed the tone right away. Rather than respond to the tone, he turned his attention to the children in her arms.  
  
"What are they doing here?" he asked, a bit ruder than he intended.  
  
"Not that it's any of your business, but I told Fox and Theresa that I'd watch them for the day while they're at work," she replied with a glare.  
  
"Oh," Ethan said in disgust, looking at the children as if they were the cause of all his problems. Whitney noticed the look right away and hardened her glare.  
  
"Yes, work, you know, where you should already be?" she said with intimation.  
  
"Oh, yeah, work!" Ethan exclaimed, suddenly realizing why he was in a rush when he came down the stairs. "Gwen took a long time to get dressed, so now we're running late," he explained.  
  
"I see," Whitney said. "Not a really good impression to make on first day as vice president, is it?" she asked rhetorically.  
  
"I know, I was just going to go start the car, Gwen should be down any second," he replied just as Gwen made her way downstairs.  
  
"Look who decided to grace us with her presence," Whitney said with a roll of her eyes, sarcasm dripping through her voice.  
  
"What are those two brats doing here?" Gwen asked, not acknowledging Whitney's initial comment.  
  
"First of all, they're not brats," Whitney said with a glare. "And secondly, their reason for being here is none of your damn business."  
  
"Fine, I didn't really care anyway; just keep them away from our room," she replied. Before Whitney could comment, Gwen turned around and focused all of her attention on Ethan. "Did you start the car?" she asked in a sickeningly sweet voice.  
  
"No, not yet, I was just on my way," Ethan replied. "We better get going, we're already late as it is," he said.  
  
"You're the vice president, you can show up whenever you want," Gwen argued.  
  
"Ha!" Whitney said, before she could stop herself. She had seen Fox and Theresa work together in Paris and if there was one thing they didn't tolerate from their employees, it was tardiness. Whether you were vice president or a simple secretary, you showed up on time and you came prepared. 'Especially when you have a meeting with Alistair Crane,' Whitney thought to herself as she remembered Theresa telling her about an early morning meeting with Alistair.  
  
"What was that for?" Gwen asked with a glare.  
  
"Nothing," Whitney said innocently, not wanting to clue Ethan and Gwen on the fury they would be facing at the hands of Alistair Crane. "You're right, Gwen. As vice president, Ethan should be able to arrive whenever he pleases, he's earned it," she said, barely forcing out the last part of her statement.  
  
"See? There's no reason to worry," Gwen said to Ethan, although she didn't really trust the innocent look on Whitney's face.  
  
"I'd still like to make a good impression; let's hurry up and get out of here, Gwen," he said as he took her hand and led her down the stairs. "We'll, uh, see you later Whitney," he said before dragging Gwen out of the mansion.  
  
"Now that those two are gone, we can really begin to enjoy ourselves," Whitney said to the twins as she happily climbed the stairs and headed to her room.  
  
"You're late," Fox said calmly as Ethan and Gwen strolled into the large meeting room.  
  
"Thanks for the report," Ethan said sardonically. "Care to tell me why I received a memo telling me to come here?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, as soon as you tell us why you're just arriving now when the memo stated that you were to be here almost twenty minutes ago," Theresa said from her seat next to Fox.  
  
"Gwen and I just arrived, we haven't even been here for ten minutes," Ethan explained.  
  
"Our reason for our time of arrival is absolutely none of your business," Gwen said, interrupting Ethan.  
  
"It is when your so-called 'reasons' wastes twenty minutes of our time," Fox replied calmly, with a look that showed he would not tolerate anyone wasting his time. Gwen glared at him and was about to retort when Ethan spoke up.  
  
"Well, we're here now, so why the hell did you guys summon like we're a bunch of servants?" he asked coldly, directing most of the question towards Fox rather than Theresa.  
  
"Just so you know, Ethan," Fox started, pointedly ignoring Ethan's question. "Theresa and I do not tolerate tardiness from any of our employees. I don't give a damn what position you hold, you will arrive on time just like every other employee does, is that clear?" he asked. Ethan and Gwen glared at him, refusing to let go of their pride and respond to Fox.  
  
"I think that's a yes," Theresa said, getting a kick out of the dangerous, almost murderous look, that Gwen sent her way.  
  
"Can we please get to the point?" Gwen asked irritably.  
  
"Gwen, dear, hasn't anyone ever told you that patience is a virtue?" Alistair's voice asked, seemingly out of nowhere.  
  
"Alistair?" Gwen asked, looking around before her eyes finally took notice of the phone lying on the center of the table.  
  
"Yes, Gwen, it's me," Alistair said calmly.  
  
"Why are you on the phone?" Ethan asked as he and Gwen took a seat across from Fox and Theresa.  
  
"I'm sitting here waiting because two employees decided it'd be nice to waste my time by showing up late," Alistair replied coolly.  
  
"About that." Ethan started.  
  
"Save it," Alistair interrupted harshly. "As Fox stated, tardiness is unacceptable in Crane Industries. If you can't accept that then you should resign now before you waste anymore of our time."  
  
"It won't happen again," Ethan said quickly, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at Gwen since she was the reason they were late.  
  
"I'm sure it won't," he replied curtly. "Now that that's over, I'd like to get back to the reason of this meeting. I faxed over papers concerning your first job as business associates; they can be found in the folder that you were given, Fox," he explained. Fox opened the folder and began to hand out all the papers that were in it.  
  
"Who's Phillip Anderson?" Gwen asked as she skimmed through the papers.  
  
"He's a very well-esteemed business man; he owns thousands of acres of land," Alistair explained. "For years, I have been trying to get him to sell me a piece of land that he owns, but he has always refused."  
  
"Why?" Theresa questioned as she continued to read the papers.  
  
"He's what you would call a do-gooder," Alistair replied with a sigh. "He constantly donates to charity and he holds various auctions during the year to raise money for orphanages and such. He apparently doesn't approve of the reputation the Crane name has carried, and he refuses to do business with us."  
  
"So what do you expect us to do?" Ethan asked. "Why do you think we can convince him otherwise after you've tried for years?"  
  
"That is the point of this assignment," Alistair replied coolly. "It's your job to convince him to sell you the land."  
  
"And if we can't?" Gwen asked.  
  
"Consider yourself fired," Alistair said coldly, not liking the challenge in Gwen's voice.  
  
"Are you serious?" Ethan asked incredulously. "You'd just fire all four of us, just like that?"  
  
"No, I'd fire you and Gwen," Alistair said calmly. "I have no doubt in my mind that Fox and Theresa could convince Mr. Anderson to sell the land-I've seen them convince even the most stubborn businessmen to do business with them. This assignment is merely to show me that I didn't make a mistake by hiring him," he explained.  
  
"So, this is basically a test for Ethan to prove that he's worthy of this job?" Gwen asked indignantly.  
  
"Not just Ethan, Gwen. Remember, if he leaves, so do you," he replied. "I'm really not trying to set you two up, I'm merely making sure that this so-called partnership between you and Ethan isn't going to be a waste of my time," he explained.  
  
"So, why are Theresa and I here?" Fox asked.  
  
"To make sure that this deal goes through. Incase Ethan and Gwen make any mistakes, then you and Theresa will have to interfere," Alistair replied.  
  
"So, you want us to play babysitters to grownups?" Theresa asked in disbelief, obviously not liking Alistair's explanation. "Ethan is a grown man, he can handle a little business transaction on his own," she said determinedly.  
  
"Look Theresa, I know this isn't exactly the ideal merger that you expected on your first day of work in Harmony, but Mr. Anderson is a very stubborn man and Ethan and Gwen are going to need someone just as stubborn to make sure the deal is made. And there is no one I know that is more stubborn and aggravating than you or Fox."  
  
"You really know how to compliment a woman, Alistair," Theresa said sarcastically.  
  
"Look, Mr. Anderson has already set an appointment this afternoon for lunch. He'll will meet you at the Seascape Restaurant and by the time lunch is over, you will have had him sign the contracts," he said, not leaving room for arguments.  
  
"We'll make sure that happens," Ethan said quickly.  
  
"I know you will-the future of your job requires that you do," Alistair replied.  
  
"Is that it, Grandfather?" Fox asked, wanting to hurry up and leave.  
  
"Yes, Fox, that's it. I'll contact you later this evening to make sure that everything went as planned. Goodbye," he said before hanging up.  
  
"Glad that's over," Fox said with a smile as he turned off the speakerphone. As much as he loved his job, he never could stand the tediousness of meetings; they bored him to no end. He looked up to see Ethan looking at him expectantly. "You do know that you can leave now, right?" he asked.  
  
"I just wanted to let you know that I'd appreciate it if you'd let me do all the talking at the meeting," Ethan said.  
  
"Excuse me," Fox asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"I've handled these type of men before and Mr. Anderson won't appreciate it if some arrogant man tries to force him into a transaction," he explained.  
  
"And by 'arrogant man' I suppose you're referring to me?" Fox asked frostily.  
  
"Well, yeah," Ethan said.  
  
"Who the hell do you think you are?" Theresa asked, cutting in before Fox could say anything. "How dare you sit here and insult your boss like he's some little child," she said crossly.  
  
"I'm just trying to ensure that nothing goes wrong," Ethan said angrily, not liking the way Theresa always came to Fox's defense.  
  
"Well maybe you should-"  
  
"That's okay Resa," Fox interrupted with a small smile. "If Ethan wants us to stay quiet and sit on the sidelines, we'll do that."  
  
"Excuse me?" Theresa asked, turning her glare to Fox.  
  
"We'll do as Ethan asked-after all, as associates, we have to learn to respect each others wishes," he replied, keeping his attention on Ethan.  
  
"Thank you, Fox," Ethan said warily. "I'm glad that you're learning from me," he said with a self-assured smile as he rose from his chair with Gwen. "We'll meet you two at the Seascape," he said before walking out of the room with a smug Gwen.  
  
"What the hell was that!?" Theresa asked as soon as the left the room. "I don't know if you forgot or something, but I stand down and stay quiet for no one, especially Ethan and Gwen," she said angrily as she pushed herself out of her chair and began to pace in from of Fox.  
  
"Of course I didn't forget," Fox said, barely hiding his smile at Theresa's angry expression. "Look, calm down," he said.  
  
"Calm down!? You want me to calm down after you just told Ethan that you and I would sit down and be quiet like a couple of lap dogs?" she exclaimed angrily. "What the hell were you thinking?"  
  
"I was thinking that Ethan's going to feel pretty stupid once that meeting is over," he said as he grabbed her arm and prevented her from pacing.  
  
"Care to explain why?" Theresa asked as Fox pulled her onto his lap.  
  
"Think about it, Ethan has worked at Crane Industries for years, Alistair knows that he can make simple business transactions," he explained.  
  
"What's your point?"  
  
"If Alistair knows this, then why would he send us 'baby-sit', as you so eloquently put it? Alistair obviously knows that Mr. Anderson won't just easily give into Ethan or Gwen, which is why he sent us along. He knows that they're going to need our help," he explained.  
  
"But if we stay quiet, we might not get the land from Mr. Anderson," Theresa said, still not understanding Fox's explanation.  
  
"Oh, we'll get it. Here's what I'm thinking-eventually Ethan will realize that all of his talking and explanations aren't getting through to Mr. Anderson. So what will he be forced to do? Turn to us for help, that's what," he explained as recognition clouded in Theresa's eyes.  
  
"And after we convince Mr. Anderson, Ethan and Gwen will realize that we're not the inexperienced fools they think we are; they'll realize that we're not to be messed with," she said with as the pieces started to fall together.  
  
"I was thinking more along the lines that Ethan would look like a complete idiot, but yeah, your theory works too," Fox said with a small laugh before placing a sweet kiss on Theresa's lips. "All right babe, how about you and I get back to work," he said as he as Theresa rose from his chair.  
  
"Okay," Theresa said reluctantly, not wanting to leave the comfort of Fox's arms. "Come on, I still have to make a few phone calls to Paris to make sure everything is going okay with the company," she said as she took his hand and led him out of the meeting room.  
  
"I've got to talk to a few of the lawyers, so I'll see you later," Fox said as he leaned down to kiss Theresa's lips lightly.  
  
"Okay, I love you," she said with a smile.  
  
"I love you, too," Fox said before turning and heading down the hall.  
  
A few hours later, Fox and Theresa found themselves outside of the Seascape Restaurant, awaiting the arrival of Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"There they are," Theresa said as she saw them approach.  
  
"Good, let's hurry up and get in-I'm hungry," Fox said.  
  
"When are you never?" Theresa asked with a smile.  
  
"You've got a point," Fox replied with a smile as he leaned down and gave Theresa a light kiss on the corner of her mouth.  
  
"God, couldn't you at least wait until you were alone?" Gwen asked irritably as she and Ethan reached Fox and Theresa.  
  
"Good to see you too, Gwen," Fox said sarcastically.  
  
"Wish I could say the same," Gwen replied.  
  
"Same here," Ethan muttered.  
  
"Well, I guess we should head in; we wouldn't want to keep Mr. Anderson waiting," Theresa said after a moment of silence.  
  
"Theresa's right," Ethan said. "Mr. Anderson is probably already there waiting," he added before walking into the restaurant.  
  
"Hello, we're here to meet a Mr. Phillip Anderson," Fox said as soon as the reached the host's stand.  
  
"Yes, Mr. Anderson, right this way, please," the host said as she began to lead them towards a table.  
  
"Remember, let myself and Gwen handle all the negotiations," Ethan whispered as they made their way over to the table.  
  
"Whatever you say, Ethan," Theresa gritted out, barely refraining from lashing out at Ethan's self-righteous attitude. Fox, noticing Theresa's expressions, laughed before giving her hands a gentle squeeze.  
  
"Hello, Mr. Anderson, it's nice to meet you," Fox said politely as he shook Mr. Anderson's hand.  
  
"Hello, it's nice to meet you too, but please, call me Phillip; Mr. Anderson makes me feel as old as I look" said the kind, old man with a smile.  
  
"Okay, Phillip," Fox said with a charming smile. "I'm Nicolas Crane, and this is my wife, and partner, Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald Crane," he said.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Crane," Phillip said warmly.  
  
"You too, Phillip," Theresa said with a bright smile as she shook Phillip's hand.  
  
"And that is Ethan Winthrop, the vice president of Crane Industries, and his wife and personal assistant, Gwen Winthrop," Fox added.  
  
"Hello, Phillip," Ethan said while shaking his hand.  
  
"Why hello, Ethan, Gwen," Phillip replied with a warm smile. "Please, have a seat," he said as he gestured to the seats around him.  
  
"Thank you," Theresa replied as she took a seat next to Fox and directly across from Phillip.  
  
"What do you say we order before we get down to business," Phillip suggested as he waved over a waiter.  
  
"Sounds good," Fox replied before the waiter came over to take their orders.  
  
A while later, Fox and Theresa sat at the table eating their food as they watched Ethan and Gwen try, in vain, to convince Phillip to see his property. Theresa couldn't help but smile slightly behind her wine glass as she heard Phillip turn down Ethan and Gwen for the fifth time. Gwen, noticing Theresa's smile, glared at her before speaking up.  
  
"Well, Theresa, can you think of any way to convince Mr. Anderson to sell his property?" she asked, her dark glare betraying the sweetness of her voice.  
  
"Yes, Theresa, do you think you can help?" Ethan asked desperately, his eyes pleading for some assistance.  
  
"Actually, Ethan, I don't think so. I think I'll just leave this to you and Gwen-you know, let you do all the talking," Theresa replied with a small smile.  
  
"No, I insist, if you can help, please do," Ethan practically pleaded, surprised that Theresa was purposely leaving him out to dry. "That includes you too, Fox," he reluctantly added.  
  
"With all do respect, Mr. Winthrop," Phillip started. "I really don't think anything Mr. or Mrs. Crane will say can change my mind. I've heard all about the Crane's affairs and I'd rather not associate myself or my company with it, no offense," he said, looking at Fox and Theresa.  
  
"None taken," Fox replied. "I completely understand your point of view."  
  
"I'm sure you are nothing like your grandfather, or father, for that matter, but I'd rather not take the chance," Phillip added, not wanting to accuse Fox of any of the wrong doings that were constantly associated with his family. .  
  
"But, Phillip, I can assure you that we will not use the property for anything that you wouldn't approve of," Ethan tried to explain.  
  
"Can you really ensure that?" Phillip challenged. "Can you sit here and tell me that you know without a doubt that Alistair will not try to use this property to further expand his business at the expense of others? Or that he wouldn't use this merger with me to bring down another company?" Ethan stayed silent, knowing that he couldn't guarantee anything. "I didn't think you could," Phillip said as he began to rise from his seat.  
  
"Wait, Phillip!" Theresa exclaimed, realizing that she and Fox had already proven their point and she could finally interfere. "Please, have a seat and let us talk this through again," she suggested.  
  
"I really don't see what there's to talk about," Phillip replied, taking a seat, nonetheless.  
  
"Look, Phillip," Fox started. "I know that the Crane name isn't the type of publicity you're looking for, and I can't blame you, but I can assure you that things will change. Theresa and I have been running a Crane Industries branch in Europe for almost five years and we have turned the entire company around. We are completely fair, legitimate, and respectful. We would never buy land from a respectable man like yourself only to use it for wrong doings; that's not who we are," he said, surprising both Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"Exactly, sir," Theresa added. "Fox and I have just started running the Harmony division and we would never allow the Crane name to get sucked back into a reputation of dishonesty. If you look at our files, you will see that all of our dealings in Europe were completely fair and successful. We've even donated millions of dollars to various charities all over the world," she said as she handed Phillip the various files that she had brought with her.  
  
"These files are quite impressive," Phillip commented as he continued to browse through the files.  
  
"Yes, it is," Fox said. "I understand your doubts, sir, but you have to know that as a grown man and father, I would never involve myself in a business that I thought would make my wife or children any less proud of me. I'm here because I believe and trust in the Crane name and Crane Empire. I'm telling you right now, I can guarantee that you won't regret selling this large piece of property to Crane Industries. And if you do, I will personally pay you twice the value of the land as a show of apology."  
  
"You'd be willing to do that?" Phillip asked warily. "You have that much faith in this company?"  
  
"Yes, I do, sir," Fox replied. "I have faith in the company, I have faith in the success my wife and I can accomplish together, and I have faith in each of the employees of Crane Industries who help to make it what it is today," he said confidently.  
  
"Well, that's a lot of faith son," Phillip said, clearly impressed by the young couple sitting across from him. "And what about you, Theresa, do you think I should do business with the Cranes?" he asked, knowing Theresa's history with the Cranes.  
  
"No, sir," Theresa said. "I know you should do business with the Cranes, because Fox and I, we're basically the only Cranes running the company, and we'll make it our duty to make sure that no one regrets doing business with us," Theresa replied with confidence. She watched as Phillip looked back and forth between herself and Fox before finally cracking a smile.  
  
"Well, if you say so, hand me the contract," he said kindly.  
  
"Really?" Gwen asked, shocked and angered that Fox and Theresa had accomplished, in less than ten minutes, what she and Ethan couldn't accomplish throughout their entire lunch meeting.  
  
"Yes, Gwen," Phillip replied. "Fox and Theresa seem confident that I won't be making a mistake, so I'm going to trust them; after all, it'll probably only be a few years before they're the top leading business duo in the country, and I'll probably regret not doing business with them when I had the chance," he replied with a smile.  
  
"Why, thank you sir," Theresa said, in reference to the obvious compliment.  
  
"Yes, Phillip, thank you very much," Fox replied.  
  
"Don't mention it," Phillip said as he signed the last paper that Ethan had given him. "I'm sorry, but I must be going; my daughter's got a dance recital and I promised I'd be there before she went on stage," he said as he rose from his chair.  
  
"Of course," Theresa said as she also rose from her chair, along with Fox, Ethan, and Gwen. "Thank you once again, sir."  
  
"It was my pleasure," Phillip said. "I'll will see you four around," he said before shaking hands with all four of them and leaving the restaurant.  
  
"Well, that was pretty easy," Theresa said to Fox, as soon as Phillip left the restaurant.  
  
"Yeah, the way Grandfather described him, you'd have thought that we'd be sitting here for hours trying to convince him," Fox replied as he gathered the files that Theresa brought with her.  
  
"Uh, hello!" Gwen said angrily. "Incase you didn't notice, Ethan and I did just sit hear for an hour and a half trying to convince him to sell the damn property!"  
  
"Oh, and Fox and I got it done in less than ten minutes, isn't that funny," Theresa said with a smile.  
  
"You know, the two of you could have helped if you knew it was going to be that easy," Ethan said sullenly.  
  
"We would have, but someone told us to keep our mouth shuts, and we were just following orders like good little students," Theresa said cynically.  
  
"Yeah, Ethan, that's all we're here for, right?" Fox asked. "We're here specifically to follow your orders. Never mind the fact that we're your bosses-you still have every right to boss us around, right?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"I wasn't trying to sound like your boss, I was just trying to make sure that nothing went wrong," Ethan explained weakly.  
  
"And Theresa and I would have been the reasons why something could have gone wrong?" Fox asked, restraining from yelling loudly and attracting the attention of the whole restaurant.  
  
"Maybe not Theresa, but you, Fox, we know how impatient you can be," Ethan said, not noticing the angry look that came across Theresa and Fox's face at his statement. "I just didn't want you to get impatient and then make Mr. Anderson feel like you were forcing a decision on him."  
  
"And I suppose you came to this conclusion because you know me so well, right," Fox asked scathingly.  
  
"As a matter of fact, I do," Ethan replied, getting angry at Fox's sarcastic replies. "You're as arrogant as they come, Fox; you always have been, probably always will be."  
  
"Fox is anything but arrogant, Ethan," Theresa said before Fox could reply. "He may be confident, he may be a bit stubborn, but not arrogant. And even if he were, his personality is not the issue here," she said calmly.  
  
"And what is the issue, Theresa?" Gwen asked with a glare.  
  
"The issue is that Ethan thought that he had a right to tell Fox and I how to act during a meeting," Theresa said while glaring at both Ethan and Gwen. "Fox and I may not have been working in this business as long as you, Ethan, but as you saw from this meeting, we are no less skilled than you. And neither one of us appreciated you sitting there and giving us orders like we're a bunch of children."  
  
"Theresa, I-" Ethan started.  
  
"I don't want your explanations," Theresa interrupted coldly. "I want you to remember that I'm not your little naïve ex-girlfriend, and Fox isn't your careless younger brother. We're two grown, responsible adults, and more importantly, we're your bosses. So if anyone is going to be giving orders, it's going to be us, is that clear?"  
  
"That goes for you too, Gwen," Fox said, seeing that Gwen was about to protest.  
  
"Excuse me?" Gwen asked defiantly. "I am Ethan's assistant, therefore he's the only one I listen to. The two of you have no power over me," she said with a smug smile as she laid a hand on her hip.  
  
"Well, then, Ethan, I'll leave it up to you to reiterate to Gwen what Theresa just said," Fox said, smiling as he noticed the smug look disappear from Gwen's face to be replaced with a glare.  
  
"Are you seriously going to be so petty and use your position at Crane Industries to take control of us?" Ethan asked Fox in disgust.  
  
"Take control?" Theresa asked with a laugh. "We don't want control over you two-hell if I had things my way, you two wouldn't even be working with us. I don't want power over you Ethan, or Gwen for that matter. I want respect, and I don't mean respect as a person, because your respect in that matter means nothing to me. I want respect as your boss. I want you to recognize that from this moment on, you and I are not friends and I'm no longer your ex-girlfriend. I'm your boss and fellow associate, and I deserve the same amount of respect that you show to everyone else at Crane Industries. And I won't tolerate you treating Fox or I any differently just because of the history we've shared."  
  
Ethan stared at Theresa, unable to believe the way she was standing in from of him and demanding respect from him and Gwen. This wasn't the Theresa he remembered. His Theresa would never stand there and glare at him like he was the lowest scum on Earth. What the hell happened to her? Almost immediately, Ethan got his answer. 'Fox,' he thought bitterly. 'He got her in his clutches and completely changed her. Leave it to my brother to ruin someone as sweet and kind as Theresa.' Unable to help himself, Ethan threw a murderous glare at Fox. His glare grew harder when Fox simply shrugged his shoulders and turned away from him.  
  
"I don't have time for this," Theresa said, seeing that Ethan was lost in his thoughts and hadn't said anything the last few minutes. "We've got to get back to work," she said turning to Fox.  
  
"Yeah, let's get out of here," Fox said as he grabbed Theresa' jacket and put it on her. "When your hubby comes out of his little trance, tell him that he's got fifteen minutes to make it back to work, otherwise he's late," he said to Gwen who just rolled her eyes at him as he and Theresa left the restaurant.  
  
"Ethan? Are you okay?" Gwen asked, shaking Ethan out of his thoughts.  
  
"What? Yeah, I'm fine Gwen," Ethan said feebly. "We better get going before we're late," he said as he took Gwen's hand.  
  
"Ethan?" Gwen called out, stopping Ethan from walking.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You're over, Theresa, right?" she asked, almost dreading his answer.  
  
"Why would you ask me that?" Ethan asked nervously.  
  
"I'm not blind, Ethan. I've seen the way you've looked at her. Not only that, but I've seen the glares you've given Fox. It's almost like you resent him for marrying Theresa," she said, barely hiding her jealousy.  
  
"Gwen, you're just being paranoid," Ethan replied unconvincingly. "Theresa and I are over, I have no feelings for her. I love you, and only you. Now, let's hurry up and get out of here," he said as he began to lead her out of the restaurant.  
  
'He's not over her. And despite Theresa's claims of loving Fox, I know she's not over Ethan,' she thought jealously. 'It doesn't matter, I'll make sure that Theresa keeps her slimy paws off of my husband, by all means necessary.' With that, Gwen regained her composure and continued to follow Ethan out of the restaurant.  
  
TBC 


	8. Chapter 8

I know—it's been forever since I updated, and right now my only excuse is writer's block, so I think I'll just go straight to the apology. I'm really, really sorry!! But this chapter is kind of long, so hopefully that makes up for something, lol. A special thanks goes out to Talia, aka Sexy Angel, for helping me so much! You're the best! This chapter's for you!  
  
Chapter 8  
  
Three Months Later...  
  
"NO!" a voice exclaimed loudly into the speaker of the phone. "I specifically asked for five yards of red lace, and you sent me three! How the hell am I supposed to make the dress if I don't have enough material!?"  
  
"Look, miss, as I said before, the lace you requested is a rarity; we did the best we could," a masculine, arrogant voice replied.  
  
"The why did you wait until the last minute to inform me of this?" Theresa asked angrily.  
  
"Well, ma'am, I didn't think that—"  
  
"You didn't think that I'd notice the difference? Or did you think I'd just overlook the entire incident?" Theresa asked sharply.  
  
"Ma'am, try and understand—"  
  
"Oh, I understand, I understand perfectly," Theresa said, interrupting the man. "I understand that for the past month and a half, I have been trying to get you to ship that damn piece of lace and you have repeatedly given me idiotic excuses as to why you could not send it to me. And then when you finally do send it to me, you give me two yards less than what I asked for!"  
  
"Listen, ma'am," the man said, getting slightly annoyed with the female yelling at him. "The lace you requested if very expensive and very rare. This store can't just ship out five yards of that material to some local fashion designer who'll just ruin it after failed attempts of trying to make a so-called dress," he said snobbishly.  
  
"So-called dress? Are you insulting me?" Theresa asked angrily.  
  
"I'm simply stating the truth," the man replied calmly. "You're not the first wannabe designer to call asking for expensive material, and you won't be the last."  
  
"Is that so?" Theresa asked in a surprisingly calm tone. "And tell me Kenneth," she said, remembering his name from the very first conversation they had almost two months ago. "What makes you so sure about the outcome of my career?"  
  
"It's the same with every local designer, Ms. Theresa," Kenneth replied in a bored tone, using the only name he knew Theresa by.  
  
"Tell me something, Kenneth, who's your manager and where is he right now?"  
  
"Mr. Albert Wilmington, ma'am, and he's not here at the moment," Kenneth replied. "If you're thinking about reporting me, I must warn you that you'll be wasting your time. I've been a treasured employee of Mr. Wilmington for almost five years, I highly doubt that he'll fire me due to a complaint from a low-rate designer," he said with a roll of his eyes.  
  
"Well then, Kenneth," Theresa started. "When Mr. Wilmington returns, tell him that Mrs. Lopez-Fitzgerald Crane would like to talk to him about his disrespectful employees," she said confidently.  
  
"Did...did you say Mrs. Crane?" Kenneth stuttered. "As in Mrs. Nicolas Crane?"  
  
"On second thought," Theresa continued, ignoring Kenneth's inability to form a sentence. "I think I'll call back later and personally talk to Mr. Wilmington myself; I'm sure he'd love to know that his customers are being insulted by his so-called 'treasured' employee. Have a good day Kenneth," she said coolly.  
  
"Wait, Mrs. Crane..." Theresa quickly pushed the button, hanging up on Kenneth before he could say another word.  
  
"Bastard," Theresa muttered to herself.  
  
"Now that wasn't nice," a voice said with amusement from the door. Theresa looked up to see Fox leaning against her doorframe, obviously finding amusement in her agitated mood.  
  
"He's lucky I didn't lash out on him after that statement he made about me being a 'wannabe' designer," Theresa replied. "Can you believe the nerve of that guy?" she asked incredulously. "God, just because he didn't know I was a Crane, he thought he had a right to insult me."  
  
"Yeah, well you sure set him straight," Fox said with a laugh as he made his way into Theresa's office. "Anyway, enough of him—I didn't come by here to talk about some bumbling idiot," he said as he took a seat in front of her desk.  
  
"Oh really?" Theresa asked with a raised eyebrow. "What did you come here for?" she asked with a suggestive smile.  
  
"Get your mind out of the gutter, babe," Fox replied with a smile. "I came here on business," he replied.  
  
"Oh," Theresa replied with a disappointed sigh.  
  
"But as long as I'm here..." he trailed off with a smirk.  
  
Theresa laughed at his statement before coming around her desk to sit on his lap. She leaned down and placed a light kiss on his lips. She pulled away and prepared to get up when Fox brought her closer to him and brought her in a more passionate kiss. Instinctively, Theresa wrapped her arms around Fox's neck, bringing his face closer to hers. In an instant, Fox's hand was traveling under Theresa's shirt. Theresa moaned at the sensations she was getting from Fox's touch. She lightly ran her hands through his hair, smiling slightly when she heard him groan under his breath. It wasn't until Fox began to unbutton her blouse that Theresa registered that they were still at work. Reluctantly, she pulled away from Fox's lips. She laughed lightly at the boyish pout that appeared on Fox's face.  
  
"As much as I would love to continue this, we're still at work and anyone could walk in," Theresa said.  
  
"So lock the door," Fox said dismissively as he began to suck on Theresa's neck. Theresa moaned at the contact before speaking again.  
  
"Come on, we can't do this here, it's not professional," she said. Realizing that Fox wasn't going to let that stop him, she tried again. "I thought you came here for a specific reason," she said.  
  
"It can wait," Fox said, barely taking his lips away from her neck.  
  
"No, come on, stop," she said weakly.  
  
"You really want me to?" Fox asked with a smirk, hearing Theresa moan at their loss of contact.  
  
"No," Theresa said with a sigh. "But we don't have a choice," she said as she got off Fox's lap, knowing it would be the only way she could keep control of herself.  
  
"Fine," Fox said with a pout as he watched Theresa button up her blouse. "But we're going to finish this later," he said.  
  
"Definitely," Theresa replied with a smile. "All right, Mr. Crane, what business did you come here to discuss," she asked, trying to sound serious, but failing miserably.  
  
Fox laughed at Theresa's failed attempt of seriousness before replying. "I actually wanted to talk about the arrangements for the annual Madison dinner party tonight," he said.  
  
"Yeah, about that," Theresa said. "Do you really think we should bring the twins? I know that Mrs. Madison insisted on it, but I really don't think we should. They'll be so bored and restless," she said.  
  
"Yeah, I know what you mean. I personally would prefer they spend the evening hanging out with Pilar, but Mrs. Madison really wants to see them. And after all the help James Madison gave us while we were working on Crane Industries in Paris, it's the least we can do," he said.  
  
"I know, I know," Theresa said with a sigh. "I'd just rather not expose them to that lifestyle so early in life; as it is, they're going to be in the public eye because of their parents," she said.  
  
"It won't be that bad," Fox said. "I grew up in the public eye, and I turned out perfectly fine—I'm hot, I'm sweet, I'm irresistible, the list goes on and on," he said with a smile.  
  
"And you're so modest about it too," she said sarcastically.  
  
"Yeah, well, I've never been too big on modesty," Fox said with a shrug. "If you're good, you're good, no point in denying it."  
  
"You've got a point," Theresa said with a shrug. "Anyway, if you give me a few minutes, I can clean up and you and I could head home to get ready," she said as she began to arrange her desk.  
  
"Actually," Fox started. "I didn't tell you what I wanted to say," he said.  
  
"Oh, that's right," Theresa said. "So, what's up?"  
  
"About the driving arrangements...looks like we'll be joined by two unwanted guests," he said, knowing that Theresa would be just as annoyed as he was with this new development.  
  
"Oh no, no, no!" Theresa said. "I refuse to spend a thirty minute drive in the same limousine with Ethan and Gwen. It's bad enough that we've had to deal with them for the past three months, but that was for work. I won't spend my free time with those two," she said adamantly.  
  
"Believe me, Resa, I'm right there with you. As it is, I'm sick of Ethan always throwing you those sad lovesick eyes when he thinks no on is looking; but we're representing Crane Industries and since Ethan and Gwen have agreed to go, it'll look bad on the company if we arrive separately while other company employees arrive together," he explained.  
  
"Your point being?" Theresa asked. "You and I both know that neither one of us care what those uptight businessmen and women say about us," she said.  
  
"Yeah, I know, and normally, I wouldn't give a damn about what they thought, but Grandfather insisted we arrive together to 'further promote the Crane's new image'" he said, ending with a roll of his eyes.  
  
"Alistair is quickly becoming my least favorite person," Theresa muttered under her breath. Fox laughed at her statement.  
  
"Yeah, he isn't exactly number one on my list either," he said. "But it doesn't matter, either way, we're arriving at that party with Ethan and Gwen. Anyway, once we get there, we'll just ditch them," he said with a grin.  
  
"Works for me," Theresa replied with a smile.  
  
"Good, now hurry up and clean up so we can get out of here," he said, rising from the seat.  
  
"Give me a few minutes," Theresa replied as she began to clean her desk again.  
  
"All right, I'm going to go fax over the contracts for the Olsen deal and I'll come back and get you," Fox said as he made his way over to Theresa.  
  
"All right," Theresa said as she reached up and kissed Fox on his lips. "Love you," she added.  
  
"Ditto," Fox said with a smile before making his way to the door. Before leaving he turned around and said, "Don't forget, tonight, we're going to finish what we started in this office." With a wink, he turned and left before Theresa could say anything more.  
  
A few hours later...  
  
"This is ridiculous," Gwen muttered. "I still don't see why we have to arrive with them," she said.  
  
"Because, we're representing Crane Industries and Alistair insisted we do it," Ethan said as he continued fixing his tie.  
  
"Well why couldn't Fox and Theresa go by themselves?" Gwen challenged. "It's not like you absolutely have to be there," she said as she put on her earrings.  
  
"Many of the country's leading businessmen are going to be at that party tonight, Gwen, and I'd really like to get to know all of them. It'll be good for my career," he explained, hiding the fact that he wanted to spend as much time with Theresa as possible.  
  
"Yeah, sure," Gwen replied with a roll of her eyes. "You're the vice president of Crane Industries, how much better could your career possibly get?"  
  
"Gwen," Ethan said with an exasperated sigh. "Can we please not continue to argue about this? I'm going to that dinner party, and if you're really opposed to it, I can go alone. Either way, this party is too important to miss," he said, barely concealing his agitation.  
  
"You're right," Gwen said with a sigh. "I'm sorry, I guess I just don't want to spend too much time with Theresa. It's bad enough working with her and watching her constantly giving you orders, but to have to spend my night with her? It just annoys me so much," she said angrily.  
  
"Theresa doesn't give me orders, Gwen. She's is just doing her job by making sure I do mine," Ethan said, defending Theresa.  
  
"Of course, because Theresa's such a good person," she said sarcastically.  
  
"That's enough, Gwen," Ethan said as he put his suit jacket on. "Now come on, the limousine is probably waiting for us."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," Gwen muttered before grabbing her bag and heading out of the bedroom with Ethan.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
"Resa, come on, we're going to be late!" Fox called out from his position on Theresa's old bed.  
  
"I can't find my red shoes," Theresa replied from deep inside her closet.  
  
"You have like a hundred pairs of red shoes, just pick one," he said as he continued to fumble with his tie.  
  
"I do not!" Theresa cried out indignantly as she made her way out of the closet, complete with a pair of red, strapped sandals.  
  
"Wow," Fox said as soon as he saw Theresa enter the room.  
  
She was wearing a long, deep red dress. It was a halter-top style dress, so the top-half of her back was left bare. Her hair was left out, with only a few strands tied in a red hair clip. She had on a simple diamond necklace on her neck and matching earrings on her ears. She wore a diamond studded bracelet and her wedding ring shine brightly off her ring finger. To finish it off, Theresa wore a dark shade of red lipstick, topped with lip-gloss. Fox had never seen anything more beautiful.  
  
"You look...wow," he said, unable to find any words.  
  
"I must be if it rendered you speechless," Theresa said, loving the effect she was having on Fox. "It's nice to know that after almost five years of marriage, I still have the power to amaze and astound you with my beauty," she joked with a smile.  
  
"And you always will," Fox said seriously as he stood and brought Theresa into his arms. "You'll always have the power amaze me with your beauty," he said before kissing her lightly.  
  
"Well, you sure know how to make a girl swoon," Theresa joked. "You seem to have that power too," she said as she pulled back and admired Fox's suit. "You look good, Crane," she said.  
  
"Just good?" Fox asked with a raised eyebrow. "Now, come on, Resa, you and I both know that you think I look a little better than just 'good'" he said. Theresa laughed at his statement and hit Fox lightly on his shoulder.  
  
"You look absolutely perfect, Nicky," she said, addressing Fox with her personal nickname for him. "In fact, if you're not careful, I may just have to have my way with you before we leave," she said with a mischievous smile.  
  
"Is that so?" Fox asked with a smirk. And before Theresa could reply, he lifted her in his arms and placed her on her bed, hovering above her. He quickly descended his lips on her neck, sucking and nibbling, while his hands began to search for the zipper on her dress.  
  
"Fox!" Theresa shrieked in surprise.  
  
"What?" he asked, not stopping what he was doing.  
  
"The limousine will be here in any minute, we can't do this," she said.  
  
"I thought this was your idea," he said with a smile as he pulled away from her neck and looked into her eyes.  
  
"It was, but still..." she said, trailing off at the sound of a knock on the door.  
  
"Theresa? Fox? Are you two ready? I wanted to see you two before I left," Pilar said from the other side of the door.  
  
With a loud sigh, Fox separated himself from Theresa and allowed her to answer the door.  
  
"Hi, Mama," Theresa said after she opened the door.  
  
"Theresita, you look so beautiful," Pilar said in admiration.  
  
"Thank you, Mama," Theresa said with a small smile.  
  
"And you look very handsome, Fox," Pilar said, looking over Theresa at Fox.  
  
"Thank you, Pilar," Fox said with a boyish smile. "Where are you going?" he asked, noticing the bag and jacket in Pilar's hands.  
  
"Oh, Luis is doing a stakeout tonight, and I told Sheridan I'd sleep over to keep her company," Pilar explained.  
  
"Oh, well I hope you have fun, Mama," Theresa said as he reached over and hugged Pilar.  
  
"I will," Pilar replied. "What about you two? Are you almost ready to leave?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, pretty much," Theresa replied. "We've already dressed the twins so we're just waiting for the limousine to arrive," she explained.  
  
"Really? Where are they?" Pilar asked with excitement. "I want to see how my grandchildren look in a suit and dress,"  
  
"They're playing with their toys in Antonio's old room," Theresa replied with a laugh at Pilar's excitement.  
  
"All right, well I'm going to go see them and then I'll leave," she said before leaning to kiss Theresa's cheeks. "Have fun tonight."  
  
"We will," she replied before Pilar left the room. She turned around to see Fox lying back on her bed.  
  
"Don't take this the wrong way, Resa, but we seriously need to get out of here," he said with a sigh.  
  
"I know, I know," Theresa said. "I love Mama and I appreciate her letting us live here, but I'd prefer to be in home of our own."  
  
"I'll talk to the contractor tomorrow and see if I can get him to speed up the process on our house," he said as he sat up.  
  
"Good," Theresa said as she took a seat on Fox's lap. Before she could lean down to kiss him, Pilar's voice interrupted them.  
  
"Fox, Theresa, Ethan and Gwen have arrived," she called from the hallway.  
  
"We're coming, Mama," Theresa said with a sigh as she got off Fox's lap.  
  
"Ready for the car ride from hell?" he asked with a smirk.  
  
"Can't wait," Theresa muttered unenthusiastically. "Let's get out of here," she said before taking his hand in hers and leading him out of the room. They stopped by Antonio's room to get Jessica and Justin before making their way to the living room to greet Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"Where are they going?" Gwen asked as she saw Fox and Theresa walk into the living room with a formally dressed Jessica and Justin and a stylish baby bag.  
  
"They're coming with us," Theresa replied. "Hence the reason why they're dressed up," she added under her breath.  
  
"You can't be serious," Gwen said incredulously. "You're going to bring a couple of toddlers to a formal dinner party?"  
  
"Yes, not that it's any of your business what we do with our children," Theresa replied curtly.  
  
"Theresa, you can't just bring them to the Madison party," Ethan said. "It's not professional," he said in an almost scolding tone.  
  
"Why don't you let us decide what is and isn't professional for us," Fox said. "And for your information, Mrs. Madison personally requested that we bring Jessie and Justin."  
  
"That's got to be a lie," Gwen said, not convinced by Fox's statement.  
  
"Call it what you want, Gwen," Theresa said as she adjusted Jessica on her hip. "We're bringing them with us, so deal with it."  
  
"You never stop being a bitch, do you?" Gwen asked with glare.  
  
"Watch your mouth around my children" Theresa said agitatedly, not even letting Gwen's insult affect her. Gwen opened her mouth to say something else when Fox's voice stopped her.  
  
"Christ, Gwen," he said while rubbing her forehead with his free hand. "Can you possibly go one day without wasting our time with some petty argument?"  
  
"Why you little..."  
  
"Watch your mouth," Fox warned before Gwen could say anything else.  
  
"What right do you have to insult Gwen?" Ethan asked Fox angrily.  
  
"What right did she have to insult Theresa?" he challenged.  
  
"Listen you bastard..." Gwen started only to be cut off by Jessica.  
  
"Bassard!" she exclaimed with a smile. "Bassard! Bassard!" she repeated while clapping her hands excitedly.  
  
"Look what you did!" Theresa said furiously before turning her attention to Jessica. "No, Jessie," she said in a babyish tone. "Bastard is a bad word, very bad," she said, trying to make Jessica understand.  
  
"Bad!" Jessica repeated.  
  
"Yes, very bad," Theresa said. "Never say it again," she said before turning her attention to Gwen. She glared at Gwen heatedly before speaking up. "Look Gwen, this is going to be the last time I tell you or Ethan to monitor your use of curses around my children. You should both be smart enough to know that not every parent wants their child to grow up hearing every curse word know to mankind. Don't let it happen again," she said in a warning tone. Before either Gwen or Ethan could say anything else, Fox spoke up.  
  
"And with that said," he said. "Let's get out of here; the sooner we get there, the sooner we can get away from each other," he said with smile.  
  
"That's the smartest thing you've said since we got here," Gwen muttered.  
  
"Go to hell, Gwen," Fox said before walking towards the front door. Before leaving the living room, he turned around and said, "And that was the smartest thing I've said since you got here," he said with a smug smirk before walking out of the house, Theresa not too far behind him. With an irritated sigh, Ethan and Gwen followed.  
  
Once all six occupants were situated in the limo, the chauffer began to drive. There was a silence of five whole minutes before anyone said anything. Ironically, Justin was the one that finally broke the silence when he started to jump on Fox's lap and play with his tie while babbling baby words.  
  
"Hey little guy," Fox said to Justin. "What's wrong? Is something wrong with your old man's tie? Or is it the color? Because if it is, then it's your mommy's fault; she picked my outfit for tonight," he said, talking as though Justin could understand everything he was saying.  
  
"I'll have you know that I have great taste in clothing, Nicolas Crane" Theresa said confidently from her seat next to Fox. "And Justin loves it, don't you sweetheart?" she asked, leaning down to face Justin. Justin laughed and clapped his hands before turning back to Fox.  
  
"Love it," he repeated with a small laugh. "Daddy nice!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Why, thank you little guy," Fox said with a smile. "You're looking pretty sharp yourself," he said as he looked down at Justin's suit. "Guess it's a family trait," he joked. "You know, your mom and little sister look beautiful tonight also," he added while turning Justin to Theresa and Jessica. Justin crawled over to Theresa and grabbed her face before replying.  
  
"Mommy nice too," he said. "Jecca too," he said while grabbing Jessica's hand.  
  
"Thank you, little guy," Theresa said before placing Jessica on the seat next to Justin so that they could entertain each other. She leaned back, along with Fox, and watched at Justin and Jessica began to play with the toy trains that they brought in the baby bag.  
  
Across from them, Ethan watched with envy as Justin showed off his trains to Fox while Fox watched attentively. He watched as Justin started to use Fox's leg as a train track; and he watched as Fox unexpectedly grabbed Justin and started to tickle him, causing Justin to shriek with glee. Turning to Theresa, he watched as her face broke out into a huge grin as Fox played with Justin. He saw her happily fix Jessica's rumpled dress while playing with her.  
  
Angrily, jealously, he watched all of this. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Fox wasn't supposed to be Theresa's husband. And he definitely wasn't supposed to be the father of her children. 'He doesn't deserve anything he has,' Ethan though angrily. He should've been with Theresa. He should've been the only man to touch her and make love to her. Him and him alone. Turning to Gwen, Ethan was only half surprised to realize he didn't even feel guilty about having thoughts of Theresa with Gwen right next to him.  
  
'Gwen,' Ethan thought with a sigh. Sometimes he wondered why he was still with Gwen. He knew he didn't love Gwen. Hell, he knew that even before Theresa left for Paris. But he constantly lied to himself, wanting to make himself believe and wanting to make Theresa believe it. If he were really honest with himself, Ethan would admit that the only reason he really married Gwen was to make Theresa feel the same pain he felt at all of her lies. 'What the hell was I thinking?' he thought. 'God, if I just listened to Theresa that day she came to the Crane mansion, none of this would have happened.' Turning back to Gwen, Ethan saw her glaring daggers at an uncaring Theresa.  
  
That was another thing bothering him. Gwen had never liked Theresa—he knew that—but she had always somehow made sure she never stooped too low because of her dislike. In his eyes, Gwen had always tried to be the bigger person in her confrontations with Theresa. But since Theresa came back to Harmony, Gwen had been more and more candidly obvious with her hatred for Theresa. There were many nights since Theresa and Fox returned to Harmony that Gwen would spend hours complaining and insulting Theresa. It made Ethan wonder why he never saw such a dark side of Gwen before they got married. Ethan also wondered why he stupidly hired Gwen as his personal assistant. Since he and Gwen had been working together, Gwen had become more and more possessive of him, especially around Theresa. Not that Ethan could really blame her. He couldn't guarantee that he'd have stayed away from Theresa if Gwen weren't around.  
  
God, when did his life become so dissatisfying? When did he get to a point where his marriage had as much love as Ivy and Julian's marriage did? Better yet, when did he get to a point where he had to sit back and watch his half-brother live the life he always wanted, complete with the love of his life and the children he never got the chance to conceive? When did all of this happen? And why did he let it?  
  
Ethan pondered all of this, losing himself in his thoughts. It wasn't until Gwen shook his shoulders that Ethan realized they had already made it to the Madison mansion.  
  
"We're here already?" he asked with surprise.  
  
"Already?" Gwen asked confused. "We've been driving for about forty-five minutes. Where have you been?" she asked.  
  
"Nowhere," Ethan replied quickly. "I was just thinking about some contracts that I need to look over when we get back home," he lied.  
  
"All right, well, come on," Gwen said with a shrug. "Fox and Theresa are waiting by the door for us," she said as the chauffer opened the door for them. Ethan stepped out and held his hand out for Gwen. Together they walked to the front door to see Fox and Theresa standing there with Jessica and Justin in their arms.  
  
"What happened to you? You were pretty out of it in the car," Fox asked Ethan inquisitively.  
  
"None of your damn business," Ethan replied bitterly.  
  
"Fair enough," Fox said curtly, refusing to let Ethan get to him. "Let's just hurry up and get this charade over with," he said.  
  
"Fine by me," Gwen said as Theresa knocked on the door. A butler dressed in a formal suit greeted them and ushered them into the house.  
  
"Good evening," the butler said. "The party is being held in the room down the hall to the left," he said. "Thank you for joining us tonight and have a good night," he added before leaving them in the hallway and heading back to the door to greet the newest guests.  
  
"Well," Fox said after the butler left. "Let's go," he said before slipping Theresa's free hand in his and walking into room, Gwen and Ethan following right behind. They barely made two steps into the room before a well-dressed middle-aged man came to greet them.  
  
"Fox! Theresa! It's so good to see you two," James Madison said with a smile as he shook hands with Fox and gave Theresa a light kiss on the cheeks.  
  
"James, you have no idea how happy I am to see you," Theresa said happily. "Paris just wasn't the same without you," she added.  
  
"Aw, why thank you, Theresa," James replied with a smile. "I'm sure Fox kept you entertained," he added with a sly wink, causing Theresa to blush.  
  
"Well, I did my best," Fox said with a devilish smirk. "Anyway, James, how have you been?" he asked.  
  
"Great," James replied. "The company's doing great, I'm healthy, my family's healthy—I couldn't ask for anything more."  
  
"Well that's good," Theresa said.  
  
"Yes, it is," he replied. "And what about these two," he said leaning down to become eye level with Jessica and Justin. "The last time I saw them, they were barely three months old; they've grown so much," he said as he cooed at Jessica and Justin.  
  
"These little ones are great," Fox said as he began to bounce Jessica in his arms. "Especially this one—she's as active and energetic as her mother," he joked.  
  
"Well, I personally think she gets it from her father," Theresa replied with a fake pout, causing James and Fox to laugh.  
  
"I'm sure she gets it from both of you," James replied with a smile. "Something tells me that you were both handfuls when you were young," he joked.  
  
"Moi?" Fox asked in an innocent voice. "Never, I was an angel."  
  
"Ha!" Theresa said. "I don't believe that for a second," she said with a laugh. Before Fox could say anything else, a shriek of delight caught their attention.  
  
"Oh! Look at them!" a female squealed as she headed toward them. Upon reaching them, she immediately bent down and started to admire Jessica and Justin. "Aren't you two the cutest little things ever," she gushed.  
  
"And you are?" Theresa asked in a confused tone.  
  
"My over enthusiastic wife," James answered with a smile. "Emily, this is Fox and Theresa Crane; Fox, Theresa, this is my wife Emily," he explained.  
  
"Oh," Theresa said with a smile. "I've heard so much about you," she said as she held out her hand to Emily.  
  
"James talks highly of you and Fox too," Emily said with a smile. "I've wanted to meet you two for years," she gushed.  
  
"Same here," Theresa replied. "Whenever James isn't talking about figures or contracts, he's talking about you."  
  
"That's why he's so wonderful," Emily said with a large smile before turning her attention back to the twins. "I've been wanting to meet these two since the first time James told me about them; they're so adorable."  
  
"Thank you," Fox replied as Emily continued to gush over the twins.  
  
"Can I hold her?" she asked enthusiastically.  
  
"Yeah, sure," Fox said as he handed a willing Jessica to Emily. It wasn't until Jessica was out of his arms and he had turned around that Fox remembered that Ethan and Gwen were still with them. James seemed to notice them at the exact same time.  
  
"And you two would be?" he asked Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"This is Ethan Winthrop and his wife, Gwen," Fox said. "Ethan is the vice president of Crane Industries, and Gwen works very closely by his side," he explained.  
  
"Well, it's nice to meet you," James said as he shook hands with Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"You too, Mr. Madison," Ethan replied.  
  
"James, where are your manners?" Emily asked. "Stop making them stand here and find them a table," she said in an almost scolding tone.  
  
"Oh, yes of course," James said in an apologetic tone. "Follow me, and I'll find you a good table," he said before turning and heading further into the large room.  
  
"The room looks lovely," Theresa commented as she admired the marble floors and decorative ceilings.  
  
"Thank you," Emily replied. "It was actually James's idea to make this a ballroom; I wanted to expand it a little more and make an indoor pool," she added as James came to a stop in front of them.  
  
"I'd prefer it if you sat near Emily and I," James said as he stopped by a table. "This is the closest table to us, so you four will have to share, but I'm sure you don't mind, right?" he asked.  
  
"Actually..." Fox started only to be cut off.  
  
"No, Mr. Madison, this table is perfect," Ethan cut in, ignoring the glares that Fox, Theresa, and Gwen sent his way.  
  
"Good," James said. "Well, we've got to go greet more guests, so just relax and enjoy yourselves."  
  
"And I'll be back as soon as I can to spend more time with the little darlings," she said as she handed Jessica back to Justin. "I'll send over someone to bring you baby chairs for them," she added before smiling and walking away with James.  
  
Less than five minutes later, a maid arrived with two cherry wood baby chairs. Fox and Theresa carefully placed Jessica and Justin in the chairs before settling down themselves. They were seated for less than a few seconds before Ethan pounced on them.  
  
"Why the hell are you two so chummy with Mr. Madison?" he asked in an almost envious voice.  
  
"Why the hell is it any of your business?" Fox snapped back.  
  
"I—I just think that as vice president of Crane Industries, I have a right to know of all our business connections," he explained.  
  
"Oh, you feel you have a right to know?" Fox asked with a raise eyebrow. "At the risk of like my grandfather, Ethan, the reality is, you only have a right to know whatever it is I or Theresa want you to know about Crane Industries. Nothing more, nothing less," he said before settling back in his chair.  
  
Ethan glared coldly at Fox, furious that his younger brother had talked to him that way. He was about to snap at him when Theresa spoke up.  
  
"But to settle your curiosity, Fox and I worked very closely with James in Paris," she said easily. "When we were getting the Paris division started, we met James and he helped us; he had a lot of business connections in Europe so he would always put in the good word for us. He basically had a big part in getting us recognized during our first year in business. After the first year, he used to always stop by and visit us whenever he happened to be in town on business—which was quite often," she explained.  
  
"So you guys are like old buddies?" Gwen asked unbelievingly.  
  
"I guess you could say that," Theresa said with a shrug. "He's a great guy, and a respectable businessman," she added.  
  
"Well, he seems like a nice guy, and he's been known to never lose a contract; it's good that you two are friends with him, it'll be good for Crane Industries," Ethan said.  
  
"I'm glad we have your approval," Fox said sarcastically.  
  
"Do you have to be so rude?" Gwen asked disgustedly. Before Fox could give a sarcastic remark, Theresa stopped him.  
  
"We're not going to get into one of your infamous, but idiotic, verbal spats, Gwen," Theresa said sternly. "We're in the middle of a dinner party, so for once, just try and act mature and keep your remarks to yourself."  
  
"Who do you think—"  
  
"Theresa's right, Gwen," Ethan interrupted, causing Gwen to turn her glare towards him. "Let's just try and get along, please," he said.  
  
"Why do you always take her side?" she asked angrily.  
  
"I'm not taking a side, I'm just saying that we need to keep our feelings in check tonight before we cause a scene," he explained.  
  
"Yeah, that includes you too, Golden Boy," Fox said. "For once, try to not make it unbelievably obvious that you're still in love with my wife," he said, barely hiding his smirk at Gwen's outraged look and Ethan's tightened jaw.  
  
"How dare you say a thing like that to Ethan, and in front of me no less!" Gwen said in a harsh whisper. "I'll have you know that my husband wants absolutely nothing to do with that scheming wife of yours," she said, throwing a disgusted look at Theresa for a stronger effect.  
  
"Because we're in a public place, and because I seem to have more class and integrity than you, I'm going to ignore that last remark," Theresa said curtly before turning to Ethan. "And, Ethan, I suggest you heed to Fox's warnings and keep your eyes off me. Now we're stuck together for the rest of the night, so let's try and behave like adults and leave the immaturity to Jessica and Justin," she said firmly before settling in her chair and looking out into the dance floor.  
  
Fox smirked slightly at Theresa's authorative behavior before turning his attention to Jessica and Justin. While Jessica was busy staring at all the guests with amazement and interest, Justin was busy staring at Fox, as though he were waiting for something. Fox lightly ruffled Justin's hair and leaned lower until he was eye level with Justin before whispering lightly into his ear.  
  
"Be ready little guy, it's going to be a long night."  
  
TBC...  
  
I wanted to include more scenes in this chapter, but I didn't want it to becoming annoyingly long, so the next chapter will probably pick up with everyone still at the party, unless I come up with a better idea. Anyway, I hope you guys liked it and please leave feedback!!! 


	9. Chapter 9

I'm Back!! Yes, I know, it's been forever since I've updated, and between you and me, it'll probably forever and year before I get a chance to update again, lol, j/k (I hope). Anyway, since I couldn't think of better ideas, I've decided to go with my original plan and pick up with the party. And since I know it's been a while, I'll just remind you guys that the last chapter ended with Fox, Theresa, Ethan, Gwen, Justin, and Jessica at a formal dinner party. All right, here we go, please tell me what you think b/c I know it's been a while since I've written and I my minimal writing skills have probably dropped down to completely nonexistent writing skills, lol. Oh, and since it's been so long since I've written, the story may seem different b/c I'm trying to build up a stronger storyline. If it's too different, please let me know, and I'll be sure to work on it. Thanks!  
  
P.S. Thanks to Talia again for her help, you're awesome!!  
  
Chapter 9  
  
Two Hours Later...  
  
"Oh, aren't they just the cutest couple ever?" Emily gushed to James, Ethan, and Gwen with a large smile as they watched Fox and Theresa hold each other lovingly as they danced on the dance floor. "It's like they were made for each other. Don't you two agree?" she asked, turning to Ethan and Gwen.  
  
"Oh, they definitely deserve each other," Gwen said with a roll of her eyes, her hidden meaning being lost on Mr. and Mrs. Madison. Ethan gave Gwen a sharp glance before turning his attention back to Fox and Theresa.  
  
"They remind me of us when we were newlyweds, James," she said with a dreamy smile.  
  
"They're hardly newlyweds, Emily, they've already got two children," James said with a smile as he turned to an already sleeping Jessica and Justin.  
  
"But look at them—they've still got the look of newlyweds. They can't get enough of each other and I noticed that after being with them for only two hours," she said, watching as Fox pulled Theresa closer to him so that she could rest her head on his shoulder.  
  
"Yes, they are quite in love," James remarked watching Fox and Theresa for a few more seconds before remembering that they still had guests at their table. He tapped Emily lightly on the arm to indicate Ethan and Gwen's presence.  
  
"So," he said with a sigh. "How long have you and Gwen been married?" he asked with a smile.  
  
"Oh, we've been married for about six years," Gwen started. "But technically, we were together years before that; we were high school sweethearts," she said with a large smile.  
  
"How, sweet," Emily replied. "It's always nice to see couples last so long together."  
  
"Well Ethan and I feel very lucky to still be together and happily married," she said, as she linked her arm through Ethan's. Ethan fought the urge to pull away and instead settled for a polite smile towards Emily and James. His smile turned into a scowl as he saw Fox approach with his arms wrapped tightly around Theresa's waist. He watched jealously as Theresa laughed at whatever it was that Fox whispered in her ear before she took her seat.  
  
"We were watching you out there," Emily said as soon as Fox took a seat. "I was telling James how you two reminded me of us years ago—so young and in love," she said.  
  
"Thank you," Theresa said with a sheepish smile.  
  
"So, Fox, James tells me that you and Ethan are brothers, I never knew that," Emily said.  
  
"Half-brothers," Ethan and Fox corrected at the same time. They gave each other a sharp look before rolling their eyes and turning their attention back to Emily.  
  
"Yes, that's correct; Ethan and I share the same mother," Fox replied unenthusiastically.  
  
"I think it's wonderful that you two are working together; it shows how close you are," Emily said obliviously.  
  
"Actually," Ethan started. "Neither Fox nor I expected to be working as closely as we are now."  
  
"Yeah, Fox and Theresa seemed to show up out of nowhere and decide to take over Crane Industries," Gwen added bitingly.  
  
Theresa threw an angry glare at Gwen and briefly considered slapping her across the faced before Fox lightly squeezed her thigh under the table, silently telling her to remain calm. Angrily, Theresa threw one more dark look at Gwen before sighing and letting the remark roll off of her.  
  
James, sensing the tension, tried to diffuse the situation. He turned to Gwen with a smile before speaking.  
  
"Gwen, dear, would you care to dance with me?"  
  
"Why thank you James, I'd love to," Gwen said smugly, satisfied that she had gotten the best of Theresa at least for this round. She stood and slid her arm into James's before he led her to the dance floor.  
  
"You know, that sounds like fun," Emily said. "Fox would you mind dancing with me?" she asked.  
  
Ethan's heart jumped at Emily's question. _'This is my chance! If Fox says yes, I'll finally be able to talk to Theresa alone'_ he thought excitedly. Despite the few months that he and Theresa had been working together, he was never able to talk to her alone; Gwen made sure of that. But now, he could finally talk to her one on one without Gwen's glares or Fox's sarcastic remarks. _'Please let him say yes,'_ Ethan silently pleaded.  
  
"I'd love to dance with you," Fox said with a charming smile. "That is, if the wifey is okay with it; she might be a little jealous that I'm going to be dancing with such a beautiful and charming woman," he joked with a wink.  
  
"As envious as I may be, I'll say yes anyway," Theresa said, playing along with Fox's joke. "Have a good time," she said, kissing him lightly on the cheek before he proceeded to lead Emily to the dance floor.  
  
Theresa watched their retreating backs for a few seconds before she decided to turn and check on the twins. She had looked at them for less than five seconds before she felt Ethan's eyes on her. Sighing, Theresa straightened up before turning to Ethan.  
  
"Yes?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"Excuse me?" Ethan asked in a confused tone.  
  
"You were staring, Ethan, what do you want?" she said, wanting to get straight to the point.  
  
"Nothing," Ethan replied quickly. "It's just, that it's been so long since you and I were alone together and able to talk," he replied.  
  
"Yeah, five years, to be exact," Theresa replied tersely. "You _do_ remember the last time you and I were alone together, right?" she asked icily.  
  
Ethan was immediately thrown back five years to the night when Theresa had tried to talk to him and beg for his forgiveness and he just coldly sent her way. That was the night she walked out of Harmony...and his life.  
  
"Yes, yes I do remember that night," Ethan said sadly. "It's haunted me in my dreams for years."  
  
"Good, you deserve it," Theresa said with no remorse as Justin started to wake up. Theresa quickly lifted him from the baby seat and sat him on her lap. Ethan decided to ignore to mother-son moment in favor of explaining his actions to Theresa.  
  
"Theresa, I know I hurt you all those years ago, and I can't tell you how sorry I am; you have to know that I regret all the things I said to you and the ways I treated you," he practically pleaded. Theresa let out an exasperated sigh before replying.  
  
"Ethan, why don't you get it? I don't want your apologies. More importantly, I don't need your apologies. Look at me, Ethan—look at what I've become. God, the night I left Harmony, my heart was broken and I wanted to just die. And God knows I still felt that way even after I settled down in Paris with Fox. But somehow I managed to overcome that heartache and I've got an amazing career and family now. I'm not just somebody's wife; I'm also somebody's Mommy. That's all I ever really wanted, Ethan—to be happily married with the love of my life and to bear his children.  
  
You can sit hear and spout out all the apologies known to mankind, but they don't change a thing. You hurt me and I learned to move on; and the moment I moved on—the moment I realized I was completely over you, was the moment that your apologies became completely meaningless to me. So, please, save your breath," she ended before lowering her head to play with Justin's fingers.  
  
Ethan sat there in stunned silence, trying to digest what Theresa had said. She couldn't be serious, could she? Had she really and completely given up on him? Not Theresa—she had always loved him. She wouldn't have let a chance meeting with Fox in an airport throw all that away—she just wouldn't. He looked up to see Theresa laughing playing with Justin, the son she conceived with his half-brother. _'Or would she?'_ he asked himself.  
  
"He looks just like him," Ethan blurted out before thinking about what he was saying.  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"Justin, he's like a spitting image of Fox," Ethan replied, unable to deny the fact, yet unable to tolerate it at the same time.  
  
"Yeah, I know, he looks more and more like him everyday," Theresa replied with a proud smile before tuning out the rest of the world again and focusing on Justin. It wasn't until a few minutes later that she realized that Ethan was still staring at her.  
  
"Look, why don't you go dance with Gwen? I'm sure James wouldn't mind you cutting in," she said, wanting him to stop looking at her with a longing look.  
  
"That can wait, I'd rather settle this matter first," he said in a somewhat controlling tone.  
  
"Consider it settled," Theresa replied quickly and testily, not appreciating Ethan's tone of voice. "If you want to bother someone, go bother Gwen. I have no time or patience for this."  
  
"Was it out of spite?" Ethan asked, seemingly out of nowhere.  
  
"Come again?"  
  
"Fox—did you marry him out of spite? I mean, of all the guys in the world that I don't know, you decide that you're going to marry my half-brother? You really expect me to believe that I had nothing to do with that decision?"  
  
Theresa glared angrily at Ethan, not at all liking his attitude. Granted, she expected Ethan to be a little upset when she and Fox returned to Harmony, but she didn't expect him to be as angry or jealous as he was. What right did he have to be mad at her? If anyone should be angry, it was her!  
  
"Where the hell do you come off telling me how I think?" she asked heatedly, instantly lowering her voice when she remembered that Justin was still wide-awake on her lap. "Believe or not Ethan, you're not the first guy to break a girl's heart and you won't be the last. There are plenty of girls in the world who have gotten their heart broken and still picked up the pieces and moved on. And, no, the loser that broke their heart had no affect on the men they chose to date next. Quite frankly, Ethan, the only affect you may have had on my decision to date Fox is what not to look for in a guy. In that case, I guess I should thank you; if it weren't for you, I could have been right where you and Gwen are right now," she ended.  
  
"And where the hell is that?" he asked acidly.  
  
"I don't need to tell you—this conversation is enough of an answer. Your wife has been out there dancing while you've been here trying to rekindle an old romance with a married woman."  
  
"You and Fox are too different, Theresa, it won't work," Ethan said, letting her last comment fall on deaf ears; he refused to talk about his marriage to Gwen right now.  
  
"It's worked for over fours years," Theresa replied evenly. "Why don't you let me worry about my relationship with Fox, and if by some miracle I need your advice, I'll be sure to ask for it; until then, don't hold your breath."  
  
"You're going to regret this decision, Theresa," Ethan said in a desperate tone, almost wishing his words to be true.  
  
"You're the only thing I regret, Ethan. Now leave me alone," she said coldly just as Gwen, James, Emily, and Fox approached their table. Gwen caught the tension between Theresa and Ethan and immediately glared at Theresa before shamelessly planting herself on Ethan's lap.  
  
Theresa rolled her eyes at both Ethan and Gwen before turning to plant a small kiss on Fox's cheek as he sat next to her. Fox also immediately noticed the tension and, by the look on Theresa's face, he could tell she was only one insult away from exploding. Smiling slightly to himself, he took Justin from Theresa's arms and lowered his head so that he could whisper to Justin.  
  
"What did I tell you kid, a long night indeed."  
  
A few hours later...  
  
Ethan and Gwen tiredly entered the mansion as the limousine carrying Fox, Theresa, and the twins drove off.  
  
"Thank goodness that's over with," Gwen muttered as she followed Ethan into the mansion.  
  
"Yeah, finally," Ethan replied off-handedly, his mind still the conversation he had with Theresa at the party.  
  
"Ethan, dear, are you alright?"  
  
"Yes, Gwen, I'm fine, just tired, I guess," Ethan lied as he entered the living room. He was surprised to fine Rebecca sitting on the couch reading a magazine.  
  
"Mother, what are you doing here?" Gwen asked.  
  
"Well I came over about two hours ago to see you. Why didn't you take me with to the Madison diner party, Gwennie? You know how hard it's been for me to get invitations to these events since Julian left me," Rebecca said in a childish tone.  
  
"Mother, it was for business, it wasn't like we had extra invitations just laying all over the place," Gwen said with a roll of her eyes. "Besides, I didn't want to go in the first place—it was all Ethan's idea."  
  
"We were invited, Gwen," Ethan said irritably. "As Vice President, it's my duty to show up. I gave you the option of staying home, but you declined, remember?"  
  
"Of course I declined! You think I'd let you go to that party with Theresa so that she could try and get you back into her little fantasy world?"  
  
"You went with Fox and Theresa?" Rebecca asked in a surprised tone.  
  
"Not only that, but we went with their twins, too," Gwen said angrily.  
  
"Are you serious?" Rebecca asked in shock. "Leave it to Theresa to pull a stunt like that." Ethan rolled his eyes at both Rebecca and Gwen before speaking.  
  
"If you'll excuse me, it's getting late and I'm tired. Goodnight Rebecca, and I'll see you upstairs, Gwen," he said before leaving the room. Gwen watched Ethan's retreating figure before sighing and taking a seat next to Rebecca.  
  
"Gwennie, what's wrong?"  
  
"What else, Mother? It's always Theresa," Gwen said angrily.  
  
"What did the little fajita do tonight?"  
  
"Mother, I've worked so hard to get Theresa out of my life, and as far as anyone else is concerned, I've succeeded," Gwen started.  
  
"Well then what's the problem, Gwen?" Rebecca asked in a confused tone.  
  
"The problem is that no matter how hard I try, Theresa is always going to be in Ethan's heart!" Gwen yelled angrily.  
  
"Gwen, that's just your imagination, Ethan loves you," Rebecca said.  
  
"I know he does, Mother, "Gwen said with a sigh. "But I can't keep lying to myself by believing that he loves only me. I've seen the way he's looked at Theresa since she came back—he loves her to death, Mother, and she doesn't deserve any of it!"  
  
"All right, maybe you're right," Rebecca said, unable to deny to looks she herself had seen Ethan occasionally give Theresa when he thought no one was looking. "But even so, Gwen, does it matter? You're his wife, and as surprising as it may sound, I don't think Theresa wants Ethan back."  
  
"Of course she wouldn't," Gwen replied bitterly. "Fox is the one running the Crane Empire—he's the one with the hefty inheritance. Why would Theresa leave him and his money for Ethan? I bet she got knocked up on purpose just to make sure he couldn't leave her."  
  
"Well, I wouldn't put it past the little tramp," Rebecca replied, feeling her anger rise at the life the Theresa had and, in her opinion, didn't deserve.  
  
"Ugh, it's not fair!" Gwen exclaimed angrily while pacing around the living room. "Theresa put me through hell and in the end, not only does she still have Ethan's heart, but she's also running the Crane Empire. The same empire that Ethan and I would be running if Fox and Theresa hadn't shown up again!"  
  
"I know, Gwennie—"  
  
"Who the hell gave her the right to just waltz right back into our lives and take everything I'd ever hoped for!?!" Gwen continued, refusing to be interrupted during her rant.  
  
"I understand what you're saying, Gwen, and I agree completely, but maybe we should be happy that in the end, you still got Ethan."  
  
"That's not enough anymore, Mother. I don't just want Ethan anymore—I want the power too. I want Theresa's power and I want to snatch it right from under her nose."  
  
"Well, if that's what you want, that's what you'll get," Rebecca replied with a sinister smile.  
  
"You can keep Fox and those little rugrats that you call children, Theresa," Gwen said to herself. "But I'm keeping Ethan, and I'm taking your precious title as CEO of Crane Industries, just you wait."  
  
Upstairs...  
  
Whitney quietly closed her room door before rushing to her phone. She quickly dialed the number she had memorized years ago and waited for it to be answered. She was about to give up on the fourth ring when someone finally picked up.  
  
"Hello?" gasped the voice.  
  
"Theresa, are you alright?" Whitney asked into the phone, concern evident in her voice.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Theresa replied. "We just walked in so I had to rush to the phone before you hung up."  
  
"Oh," Whitney replied.  
  
"Not that I mind, but it's almost two in the morning, did just call to see if I was alright?" Theresa asked.  
  
"Actually, no," Whitney replied. "I just came from downstairs and Rebecca and Gwen were talking about you," she started.  
  
"What else is new," Theresa said sarcastically.  
  
"Yeah, I know, but Gwen was really upset. She kept going on about how you have a good life and you don't deserve it and how she basically wants to take your position in Crane Industries."  
  
"Well that's not going to happen, so I have nothing to worry about," Theresa replied confidently.  
  
"Yeah, but the thing is, Gwen basically said she was coming after your job. I don't know what she and Rebecca have up their sleeves, but I'd be more careful around her now, especially at work. And you should probably tell Fox to watch out also because I'd bet that Gwen would also try to sabotage Fox for Ethan's benefit."  
  
"Ugh, this is just great," Theresa said with a groan. "The last thing I need is to have to keep an eye on Gwen like she's a little baby."  
  
"I know, but you know how she is, Theresa. Just like you, she and Rebecca have proven time and time again that they're not two people that anyone should underestimate. I'll try and keep an eye out for you here at the mansion, so you just be careful at work and such, okay?"  
  
"Yeah, no problem. And thanks for the heads up, Whit," Theresa said.  
  
"It's no big deal," Whitney replied. "I'll let you get some sleep and I'll talk to you tomorrow."  
  
"Okay, goodnight."  
  
"Goodnight," Whitney replied before hanging up the phone. She placed it on the stand before turning off the light and falling asleep.  
  
At the Lopez-Fitzgerald House...  
  
"What was that about?" Fox asked as he walked back into the living room after putting Jessica and Justin to sleep.  
  
"That was Whitney," Theresa replied as she hung up the phone. "She overheard Rebecca and Gwen plotting to try and take my position at Crane Industries," Theresa said with a roll of her eyes. "And, according to Whitney, they might even try to take yours too."  
  
"You're kidding, right?" Fox said, a small smirk threatening to come across his face.  
  
"No, I'm dead serious," Theresa replied. "They honestly think that they can get rid of us that easily."  
  
"But I'm sure you're going to prove them wrong, now aren't you?" he asked with a smile.  
  
"No, I'll let them try," Theresa replied with a smile. "It'll only be a matter of time before they realize I'm not the inexperienced little teenager I was when they tried to destroy me the first time around."  
  
"Yeah, and I can vouch for that," Fox said with a smirk. "You, my lovely wife, are anything but inexperienced," he added in a deep, passionate tone.  
  
"Oh, really?" Theresa asked, going along with their playful flirting. "Well, how about you, Crane? How experienced are you?" she asked as all thoughts and Rebecca and Gwen left her head.  
  
"I'll show you," Fox said with a smile before lifting Theresa into his arms and leading her to her old bedroom. Upon reaching her room, he closed the door with his foot before laying her on the bed. He stared at her, unable to believe how lucky he was to have her in his life.  
  
"Are you just going to stare at me, Crane?"  
  
"Yeah, I think I could stare at you all night," Fox replied honestly, looking into her eyes.  
  
"So could I," she replied before bringing her head towards her and kissing him deeply. "But we have wake early so let's just get to the good stuff," she joked. Fox laughed at her comment before beginning to undress her.  
  
"Whatever you say, babe," he said before leaning in to kiss again, and again.  
  
A while later, Fox and Theresa lay wrapped into each other's arms simply enjoying the silence around them.  
  
"So, you're really not worried about this thing with Rebecca and Gwen?" Fox asked.  
  
"No, don't get me wrong, I know Rebecca and Gwen are vicious when it comes to getting what they want. I'm just going to make sure that this is one time that they fail," Theresa replied.  
  
"Besides, if can't, I'm sure my lovely husband will take care of it," she joked.  
  
"Ah, yes, your knight in shining armor," Fox said smugly. "Whatever would you do without him?"  
  
"Shut up," Theresa said, lightly hitting his arm.  
  
"But seriously, I wouldn't worry too much. We've proven countless times that we're not to be messed with," Fox said.  
  
"You're damn right we aren't," Theresa replied. "There's no way in hell we're letting anyone take away what we've worked so hard for and earned," she said determinedly.  
  
"Definitely," Fox said before placing a soft kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight, baby."  
  
"Goodnight." TBC...  
  
Done! Well, at least for now. Okay, I haven't written in awhile, so please leave feedback and tell me what you think!! 


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